Fragile Trust
by Cassy27
Summary: Charlie gets involved in a case and nobody realizes how dangerous it gets for him until it’s too late. Will Don and his team be able to safe Charlie and will they be able to safe a toddler that is somehow the cause of everything?
1. Chapter 1

Fragile Trust

**Summary**: Charlie gets involved in a case and nobody realizes how dangerous it gets for him until it's too late. Will Don and his team be able to safe Charlie and will they be able to safe a toddler that is somehow the cause of everything?

**Spoilers**: There aren't any spoilers in this post

**Disclaimer**:_ I do not own any of the characters of Numb3rs._

**A/N**: This is my second story about Numb3rs and again, it's obvious Charlie is my favorite character. I will try and update as soon as possible.

Thank you for giving this fic a chance and reading it. Let me know what you think about it because honest feedback is always appreciated.

_Beta: Thank you, Chymom, for all the help that you have given me and for all the suggestions. I gladly accepted them!_

**Fragile Trust**

**Chapter 1 – The boy**

Don took a moment to watch the activity around him. The bad guys had been caught and were being led away. The police officers were slowly clearing out of the area. Finally, his eyes fell upon his colleagues' faces. He noticed that they looked relieved and happy to have the case wrapped up.

Thinking back, Don remembered that the lead that helped the most had come from a woman who had called the bureau to tell them that she had seen one of the man that the police were looking for. Don smiled faintly when he thought about all the pictures that had been spread around the city. The case had seemed to have hit a dead end, but those pictures had given them the break that they needed. So when a SWAT-team had been informed about the situation and who they were looking for, they had set their plans into action. It was only two hours later that the team could enter into the house.

Don was glad that those men were going to prison. The boss was named Marc Chester, a drug-baron who had been linked to seven murders and three rape's. The rape victims that they knew about were two teenage girls and a young boy, but Don knew there were more. Marc was a smart man that knew how to erase his tracks and Don was convinced that when they would interrogate this guy, they would discover more horrible things.

There had been six employees in the house, each and everyone of them were heavy boys. Their rap sheets contained rape, murder, robberies and drug dealing. Marc's team was small as he was still working his way up and Don now only had to hunt two other employees, but he expected them to be found easily.

Don sighed, wishing that now he could just go home to Charlie's and eat his dad's cooking which probable contained a steak, but instead, he needed to interrogate this men, do the paperwork, deal with the lawyers, make sure the press was kept at bay,... All that work and Don wished that he could leave all that to someone else. But this was a part of his job and he had to deal with it whether he liked it or not.

He pushed himself away from the wall he was leaning against, ready to do whatever they would throw at him next. When he thought about it, this had been a magnificent day actually. They had achieved to arrest seven men and make the streets a little safer.

Suddenly, Don heard a soft sobbing behind him and he turned around, not knowing who would cause this noise. Turning around, his heart suddenly felt so heavy and his chest stopped moving up and down for a moment. Don needed to remind himself to breathe, but the shock had taken over his body.

A young policewoman was carrying a small boy outside of the house. He couldn't be much older than 3. He was a beautiful child with dark brown eyes and long brown curls that framed his face. But his skin was pale, his face dirtied by dust and tears. His clothes looked shabby and he was even missing a shoe. The boy had his arms pushed up against his chest and his face turned away from the woman as if he wanted to create as much distance between them as possible. It was only and when the boy and the woman passed him that Don saw the blood covering the boys cheek.

The woman walked over to an ambulance and placed the boy down on the bed where two medics immediately started taking care of the boy who looked so scared and anxious. The boy refused to do anything the medics asked of him. He continued to hold his arms as tight around his small body as he could, not letting the medics anywhere near him. He still refused to unfolds his little arms. More tears started running down his face and he started shaking softly as the two medics were taking care of his wound on his cheek.

Don couldn't stand by and watch this any longer. Quickly, he made his way and ran over to the ambulance, or rather to the little boy's side. He felt a strong need to help this kid even though he had no idea how he would be able to as he had no idea what the boy had been gone through nor how to help him. He even had no idea what the boy was thinking. Don had an idea and he waved to get Megan's attention who started running over to him as soon as she spotted Don.

"Hey," Don greeted the medics, "maybe the kid needs some space." The medics turned to face Don and didn't look very happy to have someone telling them what to do.

"You do see that he's injured, right? He needs to be taken care of." The older one of the medics said.

The boy's kept crying silently. Tears were rolling down over his cheeks, but there was barely any emotion to be seen in face and he stared into the distance, refusing to look at anybody.

"What's going on?" Megan asked when she had reached them. "Who's the boy?"

"I don't know, but the medics seem to be scaring him more than helping him. They scare the hell out of him." Don answered, not looking away from the child in front of him.

"They found him locked up in the attic." the other medic said, his soft.

Don guessed that this man had a child of his own seeing how gentle he was trying to be with the boy. He had more compassion in his voice and Don now knew he was right about guessing that this medic had a family of his own. He noticed that he had an sad gaze in his eyes, just as there was anger, indicating that he was truly hating what had happened to the kid. There was a mix of emotions in the man's eyes.

"They found him when they searched the house. He hasn't said a word ever since and I guess, judging by his wounds, he has been seriously hurt by those criminals you just arrested.'

"And like my colleague here said,' the older man said, rolling his eyes as he couldn't believe that his partner was even explaining himself, "they found him in the attic. It's summer so it's hot in there and this boy is small. He's probably dehydrated as well, so we need to take care of him. So let us do our job, please." The man added almost as an after thought.

His voice wasn't friendly at all and Don knew he would never get that medic to listen to him, so he turned to face the younger one and hoped he would listen to reason.

"The kid is terrified and he certainly doesn't like being touched. Maybe we just need to make him feel safe and then start attacking him with all sorts of medical tests." Don said in a strong but caring voice.

"We have no idea what that boy went through," Megan said, walking over to the boy and smiling at him while laying her hand gently over his curls, "but he doesn't trust adults as they are the ones that did this to him. We need to let him know that he can trust us."

Don looked at the kid that kept on staring into the distance and wished he could look into his thoughts. He wanted to know what that boy was thinking right now and he wanted to know who he was. He must have a mother, so where was she? And who is his father? Don only hoped that his parents weren't one of the criminals that they had arrested.

"That's all fine," the older medic said, raising his voice and throwing his hands in the air, "but that boy needs our help. His wounds need to be taken care of and we need to make sure he gets hydrated."

Megan quickly noticed that the paramedics raised voices were upsetting the boy. Seeing a way that she could at least help him feel a little safer, she presided the men to lower their voices and take a few steps back from the child, giving him some room to breathe and giving him some space.

The boy started shaking again as the voices were impossible to block out. Megan angrily walked up to the medics and made them take a few more steps away from the child. The enlarged space between them and the boy seemed to calm the child down as he stopped shaking now.

"The last thing we need to do is upset him." Megan scowled at the medics and Don while keeping here own voice down so that the boy wouldn't hear it.

Don was curious at first what Megan was doing, why she was being so strict, until he noticed that the child was calming down with the space he had been given. Suddenly, Don's eyes were drawn to another person with curly hair like this little boy who was standing besides Colby and David. At first Don didn't trust his eyes.

'What is he doing here? I don't have time to babysit him right now.' Don thought as he made eye contact with Megan.

"Megan, could you please make sure that these gentlemen do not harm or upset that kid?" Don asked her. He didn't wait for her to answer, but just started walking over to his brother. He couldn't handle this situation and look after Charlie too.

"Hey," Don said, "what are you doing here?" He had tried to appear calm, but his fast breathing betrayed him.

"Dad told me you were working a case and that you would be in late. I thought I'd might be able to help you. Why are you so...worked up?" Charlie causelessly asked glancing at Don, throwing him a worrying gaze.

Don rubbed his hands over his face, trying to rub away the tiredness and irritation.

"You shouldn't be here, Charlie, do you realize that this is the property of seven criminals?"

"Yes, Don," Charlie said, not understanding why Don was so overprotective suddenly, "but all those criminals have just been taken away. You know I would never come here if it wasn't safe." Charlie knew when Don's overprotective big brother side was in control.

"You shouldn't have come at all, Charlie, so you can go home now."

David and Colby kept themselves at the background, but when Charlie quickly glanced at them, he knew they were thinking the exact same thoughts as he was. Don was upset and Charlie wouldn't leave without making sure that he would be alright.

David and Colby both noticed that something about this crime scene had set Don into protective mode. They both knew better then to stand in between the brothers at times like these. And Charlie was not going to go anywhere until he knew what was going on with his brother.

"What's going on, Don?" Charlie quietly asked him. Don took a few slow breaths and sighed, knowing that Charlie would find out soon enough.

"It's that boy over there," Don said while nodding towards the ambulance, "they found him in the attic and we have no idea who he is. He's terrified and we believe he has been abused but right now he won't let anyone close enough to him to see."

"That's awful." Charlie whispered, shocked and now staring at the ambulance as well. The first thing he noticed was that the child looked upset . The second was how small the child had try to make himself look and Charlie could remember the times when he himself would try to shut the would out.

Megan was still trying to get sense into the medic's head and they had finally allowed her to talk to the boy first. Megan walked over to the boy, the medics following her close behind, and started talking to him, but it was as if she wasn't even there. The boy didn't answer, he didn't even move his head or let her know he was listening.

"How about if you all back off and let me talk to him alone. He might be more responsive to me." Megan said in a soft voice, not wanting to scare the boy even more.

Don walked to the medics again and Charlie couldn't help but slowly walk to Megan. He was curious as what she would say against a boy that had been gone through so much. What did you say in such a situation? That everything was going to be alright? Charlie knew even a child this young would distrust those words.

A policemen called out to Megan and asked for her assistance inside. Megan looked at David and Colby, but they were now too busy taking statements from the neighbors.

"Don't worry," Megan gently told the boy, "I'll be right back."

Charlie was now only ten feet away from the boy and he could see the scratches on his cheek, but he could also see that this was a cute boy and he couldn't believe why anybody would want to hurt him.

"Hello," Charlie said while he slowly closed the distance between them, "my name is Charles, but everybody calls Charlie."

When he stood almost in front of the boy, he stopped walking, keeping a safe distance away. He didn't want the boy to get claustrophobic. Charlie knew that he'd always appreciated it when he was given some room to work with his chalk boards. So the boy would appreciate it too be given some space after something terrible had happened.

"I'm a professor and I teach children." Charlie continued in a friendly voice. He wasn't actually teaching children as they were all adults too, but that was how Charlie liked to see them. Kids who were still discovering the truth, knowledge.

"Do you go to school?" Charlie hadn't expected the boy to answer. He hadn't even expected him to move, he was a complete stranger after all, but he couldn't help but smile when that boy looked at him with his big brown eyes. He still had a sad gaze in his eyes, but he had stopped shaking completely now.

"I bet you have a lot of friends, you're probably a very popular kid." Charlie said, wanting to keep talking, "do you like going to school?"

And then the boy made a small movement with his head as if he were nodding. Charlie smiled at him, encouraging him to keep communicating with him.

"What do you love to do most?" Charlie then asked him, taking a step closer to him.

The boy swallowed heavy and blinked his eyes a few times. He stopped his crying and was now drying his red eyes.

"Drawing." The boy answered in a weak voice.

"I bet you're a fantastic artist, that you make beautiful drawings." Charlie said while he now stood just before the boy. He didn't want to appear big and threatening, so he kneeled down, making the boy look down on him in stead of him looking down on the boy.

"Do you remember my name?" Charlie asked the child who was now looking in his eyes.

"Charlie." came the small soft reply.

"That's right, I'm Charlie. What is your name?" Charlie asked the boy, not seeing Megan watching him. "Can I know your name?" Charlie then asked him again, a smile still filling his face. The boy remained quiet for a moment, looking suspicious at Charlie and Charlie hoped that the boy would trust him.

"Andrew." He finally answered.

"Hey, Andrew, nice to meet you." Charlie laughed softly.

"Did he just talked to you?" Charlie was startled by the sudden voice and quickly turned around, seeing Megan standing a few feet away. Charlie stood up and looked at Andrew.

"Yeah," Charlie finally answered after a moment of silence, "is that so strange then?"

"Charlie, he's refusing to talk to anyone. He has completely shut himself off from us." Megan said, not believing what was happening. As she waved Don over, the two medics immediately followed him.

"What did he say?" Megan asked Charlie then.

"This is Andrew." Charlie said, stepping beside the boy who now seemed intimidated by the sudden presence of all those adults. His eyes became wet again and his shoulder became tenser.

"It's okay," Charlie said in a soft voice, "nobody will hurt you, they only want to help."  
The boy looked up at him with a broken gaze and then Charlie knew what he had to do. He needed to take care of this kid, he needed to keep him safe and protect him. And suddenly, he knew how Don always felt with Charlie around. Overprotective and always looking after him and now it was Charlie's turn to be that way.

"Look, you're scaring him so maybe you need to back off a little." Charlie said in a firm voice.

"What is it with you people? We need to do our job." The older medic protested.

"They're brothers." Megan noted and the youngest medic nodded, as if he now understood what was happening.

"That explains a lot." The medic then said, a soft smile covering his face, "but we still need to help him." He now looked serious again.

Charlie felt a warm little hand grab his and he looked at Andrew, confused that he was the one searching contact. Andrew was looking at him with a desperate gaze in his eyes, begging Charlie not to leave him. Charlie kneeled down again and gently placed his hand on Andrew's curls, hoping that it wouldn't scare the boy.

"I'm not leaving you and I will take care of you, I promise, nobody is going to hurt you ever again." Charlie said in a low voice and looking into Andrew's eyes. The boy blinked a few times and then nodded.


	2. Chapter 2

**Fragile Trust**

Author: Cassy27  
Word count: 2747  
Characters: Don, Charlie, Colby, David, Megan, Alan, and OC's  
Disclaimer: I don't have any rights to the Numb3rs cast and crew.

**Beta: Thank you, Chymom, for all the help that you have given me!**

**AN:** Thank you for all the story alerts that I have gotten and thanks for the reviews that have been left behind for chapter 1. I hope this chapter will be liked as well so let me know what you think about it.

**Chapter 2 - Trust  
**

A short time later, Don , David and Colby stood a few feet away from the ambulance. All three of them intently watched the little boy as he was still tightly clasping on to Charlie's hand. He looked more terrified now that the two medics were taking care of his wounds, but he didn't scream or cry. Instead, Andrew shifted his gaze between the medics and Charlie. It was as if he needed to be sure Charlie wasn't going to disappear.

"You guys should head out to the bureau," Don said after a long silence, "Start interrogating those men and find out what you can about this boy."

David and Colby just nodded and left. Don kept a watchful eye on Andrew who once again had tears spilling from his eyes. Don didn't know if that was because he was scared or because he was in pain. However, he watched in amazement as Charlie immediately comforted the child.  
He had always known Charlie was a caring person and that he wanted to help everybody, but this was something different. Don looked at Charlie again and saw so much compassion in his brother's eyes. If he didn't know any better, he would have sworn that this child Andrew was Charlie's. They even looked alike with there dark brown curls and eyes. Don chuckled softly as he thought about that.

"It's a beautiful image, isn't it?" Don was a little startled by the sudden voice next to him. He hadn't noticed Megan standing next to him.

"Yes," Don said then, "it really is."

"I spoke to child protective services and they are going to find a foster home for the boy. Until then, we need to find him a place where he will feel safe." Megan said, looking at Andrew and Charlie. She then shifted her gaze to Don and smiled faintly.

"Well," Don said, knowing what Megan was thinking, "it appears that right now the kid only feels safe with one person."

"Let's go and ask Charlie." Megan said and she immediately started walking over to the ambulance where the two medics were wrapping up. The youngest one finished off the disinfecting of the boy's cheek and then turned to Charlie.

"Physically he is okay," the medic said, "he isn't too dehydrated, but he needs to get some fluids in his system. And someone will have to keep an eye on him. It appears that the marks on his checks are self inflected."

"Andrew did that?" Charlie asked confused. The medic only nodded. Megan and Don, who now stood besides Charlie, were waiting for the medics to give them the word that Andrew could go home with someone.

"A person from the group that found him said that he looked to be terrified by the masked people around him." Megan explained to the medics.

Everybody just nodded as they didn't know what to answer to that. Any adult that had been hurt or beaten would be scared to all of sudden see a team of masked men and women come into the room. It must have been worse to a child.

"Well," the older medic said after a moment of silence, "he doesn't have to go to the hospital as long as someone takes care of him."

"Thank you." Charlie said to both medics, not taking his eyes from Andrew. Andrew hadn't spoken since the medics had started cleaning his wounds and checking his vitals. Charlie kneeled down and smiled at the boy.

"It's all over," he then spoke in a soft voice, "those men won't bother you again, but they did a fantastic job taking care of you, didn't they?" Charlie asked the boy while pointing at his shiny patched arm with figures of Spiderman. The boy nodded short and then stretched out his arms, asking Charlie to pick him up. Charlie didn't hesitate picking up Andrew in his arms. The boy quickly placed his arms around Charlie's neck and his head on the man's shoulder.

"Charlie," Megan asked as Don went to make sure they had been told all the facts, "He needs a home for the next few days until child services find him a new one, would you be willing to...take him home?" Megan's pleading eyes focused on the child held tightly in his arms.

Charlie wanted to say yes, but was he ready to care of a child? And this wasn't just any child, this was Andrew, an abused child who didn't trust the world anymore.

"I don't…" Charlie started saying, but then he felt Andrew's clasp around his neck loosen. The boy breathed slower and he became heavier and Charlie quickly realized that Andrew had fallen asleep. He swallowed heavily and then sighed.

"Okay." Charlie smiled, "Now dad will have some one around to spoil. And if I know my brother right, Don will be around to help as well." Megan had a smile on her face knowing that Charlie was right about Don being there.

"He trusts you, Charlie," she said with a smile, "I know you won't do anything to make that trust vanish. You'll do a fantastic job."

Don came standing next to Charlie and smiled when he saw the little boy asleep. He hesitated for a moment, but then cautiously reached out the Andrew's face that seemed relaxed now and he pushed away a curl that was covering his small face.

"Buddy, did Megan inform you of the situation?" Don asked Charlie.

"Yeah," Charlie said, "For right now he's coming home with us." Charlie said slowly walking towards Don's SUV.

The ride home lasted more than thirty minutes, but not a word was spoken. Don was behind the wheel while Charlie sat in the back seat with the boy laying in his arms. His arms were growing tired, but Charlie refused to change position. He didn't want to take the chance of waking the boy up. Megan had given them a few tips on how to react when he should have a nightmare, but she had also said that they should trust their instincts.

It was a little before midnight when they arrived at the Craftsman house. All the lights were still on and Don and Charlie exchanged a look. The thought hit them both at the same time. "We didn't call Dad." They both whispered to each other.

Don parked the car in front of the house and stepped out before quickly walking to the other side to help Charlie get out without making too many sudden jerky movements. Andrew placed his hands a little higher in Charlie's neck, but didn't wake up. Don grabbed the blanket from the backseat and gently placed it once again around the boy's body. It had been nice and warm in the car, but out here, it was a little cold for a small boy, even though it was the middle of august.

The front door of the house flew open and even though it was dark, Alan quickly made his way over to his sons.

"What were you boys thinking?" Alan said with a raised voice. For the first time, Don placed his hand over his fathers mouth. Alan was taking aback by Don's action and stumbled a few steps back. It wasn't until Charlie stepped towards them that Alan saw the reason for Don's reaction.

"O." was all Alan could say.

"Dad, we're trying not wake him up now that he seems to be sleeping soundly." Don whispered. All four of them entered the house and Alan disappeared into the kitchen to return with three hot cups of tea. Don cast his father a grateful gaze and then carefully sipped from the cup he was handed.

"I'm going to put him in my bed. It's big so if I lay him in the middle, he won't fall out." Charlie said, "I'll sleep in the old sofa in my room, that way I'm close to him should he wake up." Charlie ascended the stairs to do what he had said. Alan drank from his tea and then sat down on the couch. Don followed his example as he was relieved to have a moment of peace.

"Who is that boy and how long will he be staying." Alan hesitantly asked. Don took a moment to think before he answered his father.

"His name is Andrew. We went to arrest a criminal and six of his partners. The kid was locked up in their attic. We don't know anything more about him, other then he was beaten and abused. We don't even know who his father is or his mother. So I guess he will be here for a few days." Don told him.  
"That sounds as if the kid might need help, professional help. Is it safe for him to be here?" Alan asked. He knew that his sons were both smart, but this was out of their league. Was someone still looking for this child?

"Because he doesn't trust anybody except Charlie we felt that he would feel safer here." Don answered. He still didn't know why Andrew chose Charlie of all the people.

"Kids have always liked Charlie." Alan's laugh was heard throughout the living room.

"Yes," Don smiled, "That's probably because he still looks like and sometimes acts like a child himself."

"That's the way you see him." Alan commented before taking another sip of his now cooling tea.

"Well," Don sighed, "he's my little brother, the same one who in high school was always smarter than his teachers." Now they both laughed, but soon the room once again fell silent. A few minutes later they heard Charlie descend the stairs and they looked at him, waiting for him to say something.  
"He must really be out, he didn't even wake up when I laid him down." Charlie smiled, pleased that Andrew was getting some rest, "So far he doesn't appear to have any nightmares." Charlie took the cup of tea that Alan had put on the table for him. As he started to sip his luke warm tea, Don's cell phone rang and all three of them turned to the buzzing in Don's pocket. They knew it would be one of Don's colleagues and they had no idea what new they should be expecting.

"Eppes." Don greeted the caller.

"Don, it's Colby," a frustrated voice answered. "We've finished interrogating those bastards for today. I thought you might want to know what we found out." Don stood up and started pacing up and down the room. He felt restless, but did his best to control himself.

"Yeah, of course." he said, listing to what Colby was telling him.

"To start," Colby started, "they did what we thought they would. They confessed to all the crimes except the murders, however we might have caught a break. One of them is still a newbie, he cracked after only two hours. He told us about the boy. His boss, Marc, Don," Colby waited a minute getting himself mentally ready for what he had to say next. "Don, he rented the kid."

The anger that the team had towards these men and woman went up a notch as Colby was telling Don about the boy. The thought of Marc having laid his hands on that small boy upstairs made Don feel sick.

"We don't know from whom he was rented, but I'm sure it has nothing to do with child prostitution. The newbie said that the kid is simply ...not loved by his family."

"Okay," Don anxiously said, trying to keep his voice even to not alert Charlie to the information he had just heard. He didn't know how much more he could hear without letting some of his anger show.

"Thanks, Colby. Andrew will be staying here with dad and Charlie. I'll be at the office tomorrow as soon as possible. I'll speak to those..." Don paused trying to find the word he was looking for, "animals in the morning." Don's voice sounded as if he was trying to let steam out before he boiled over. He shut down his phone and tossed it in the couch. While sighing, he let himself drop down on the other end of the couch. Alan and Charlie looked at him, expecting him to tell them something, but Don wasn't sure how much he should tell them.

Don knew that if he told Charlie what Colby had found out about the boy without more information, it would only want to make Charlie look harder into keeping these animals off the street. Right now, the best place Charlie could be with would be with Andrew. Don made up his mind as his mouth slowly told them some of the information he had.

"That was Colby," Don spoke then after a minute of silence, "nobody wants to speak about Andrew yet. I will be talking to them in the morning." Charlie nodded, accepting what Don told him. Don quickly dropped eye contact with Charlie and hoped that nobody would ask anything else.

"Well," Charlie said, standing up and downing the last bit of his tea. "I'm going to get some sleep while I can. I'll see you all tomorrow." Charlie said as he made his way out the room.

"If you need anything, just call out." Alan told his youngest son who was already heading towards the stairs, "Charlie, I mean anything at all, with the boy, you know…"

"Thanks, dad." Charlie said, smiling at his father. He nodded goodnight to Don and then disappeared upstairs.

"Okay, son," Alan said, turning to Don now and keeping his voice low, "tell me what Colby really told you."

Don looked at his father and saw determination in his eyes. Alan had always known what was on his sons' minds just by looking into their eyes. Don didn't mind, on the contrary, it felt reassuring that their father knew them so well.

"Marc Chester," Don began, feeling his hands ball into fists as he spoke that name, "The leader, he rented Andrew. He rented a three-year-old boy. For what purpose would he do that?" Don's mind could come up with many reasons as to why. In his heart, he hoped they were all wrong, but his mind told him at least a few of them were right. All these events that have happened to Andrew, none of them had a purpose. It was just one sick guy who may have ruined that kid for his own personal pleasure.

"That's horrible." Alan exhaled. A frown became visible on his face and his eyes flashed with anger. Alan couldn't understand what kind of father could sell his own son to a monster. Even though Alan knew his two sons were adults, in his eyes, they would always be his little boys. Just the thoughts of what this monster might have done to the sleeping child up stairs had Alan seeing red.

''That's all we know right now." Don sighed, "We know his name is Andrew and that he was rented to a pervert. We're hoping that once these animals have time to think they might tell us something if for no other reason then get less jail time themselves."

Alan stood up and walked up to Don. He placed his hands on his shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes.

"The only thing that matters right now, is that he is safe and that the people who did this to him will be punished. You should try to rest, son, you look exhausted."

Don nodded, taking in a deep breath.

'You probably won't see me in the morning, I'll be going in early at the office." Then Don stood up and patted his father on the back as he then headed upstairs. Alan smiled at his son before he went to make sure the door was locked. A moment later, he heard his oldest son from the middle step.

"Good night, dad." Don said almost whispering.

"Good night, son." Alan said, turning off the lights and following his sons and the small abused child upstairs.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks for all the story-alerts and the reviews. I'm glad you all still stick with my story. I hope I don't disappoint this time.  
Thank you, ****Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help. I wouldn't know what to do without you guys!  
**

**Chapter 3 – Home and Safe**

Mostly asleep, Charlie could hear muffled noises floating around him, but he couldn't place them. He didn't even know where he was. Suddenly a soft wimpier pulled his eyes open. Immediately his eyes focused on Andrew curled up under his sheets, his cheeks wet and his arms embracing his knees. Charlie quickly moved from his couch and walked over to the boy. He gently pulled the sheets away and cautiously placed his hand on Andrew's back.

"Andrew?" he asked in a calm voice, not wanting to scare Andrew. But the boy was still sleeping steadily, his eyes moving fast from the left to the right as he probably was reliving some of his memories and his arms were still holding on tightly around his legs.

"Hey, kiddo, wake up." Charlie now said a little louder.

And then Andrew's eyes opened, his gaze still distant, but he didn't hesitate and climbed into Charlie's arms. Charlie was surprised that the boy didn't cry out as he had expected Andrew to not recognise him anymore.

"It's okay, kiddo, I got you." Charlie soothed him. "Are you hungry?"

Andrew looked at Charlie and then nodded. Charlie smiled at him.

"Then you are lucky because I can make the best sandwiches." Charlie said, trying to have a normal conversation with the boy, hoping it was the right thing to do.

With Andrew in his arms, Charlie walked downstairs and he could feel Andrew shifting around as he was trying to get a good look at his environment. Charlie started walking slower to give Andrew the time to gaze around. This was all new to him and it could help him adjust to this house. At least, that is what Charlie hoped. Andrew let his gaze then fall on some pictures which stood on a low closet in the living room.

"That's me and Don, my brother." Charlie told Andrew as he pointed to the picture in the middle. "And that is my dad." Charlie continued. He realized that Andrew had never seen Alan before and Charlie was already feeling a little anxious for when the moment came that Andrew would first meet his father. How would he react to that event?

"And here is the kitchen." Charlie then announced as they walked into the room. His gaze was pulled towards a small package of clothes which lay on the table. A small note was placed on it.

_These are some fresh clothes for Andrew, I got them from the neighbours._

_Don is already gone to the bureau and I'm shopping for groceries. I'll be back as soon as possible._

_Love, _

_dad._

Charlie smiled when he saw the small shirt and pants. The boy from next door was in the meantime almost eleven years old and Charlie thought he could ask him if he could lend him some toys for Andrew. Jack had always been a nice kid, always caring about little children. Maybe Jack could stop by even. But Charlie didn't know if that was such a great idea. What if Andrew would be scared of him? What if he would hate Charlie then for inviting that kid over.

Charlie shook those thoughts away from his mind as those were worries for later. He sat Andrew on the table and smiled at him. He should bath him before putting him on fresh clothes, but Charlie felt like he shouldn't be overwhelming Andrew too much as he noticed how the boy was already looking a little bit anxious while thinking about the idea of having to take of his clothes.

"It's okay, I won't hurt you." he reassured him before continuing, "Let's get you these beautiful clothes on, okay?" Charlie asked while he showed Andrew the shirt with a dog on, "You think it's a pretty shirt?"

Andrew nodded and pointed to the drawing on it.

"A dog."

Charlie smiled when he heard Andrew's soft voice. It sounded so innocent and sweet and again, he couldn't understand why someone would want to hurt such a nice and beautiful boy.

"Yes, it is." Charlie said I between small chuckles. Slowly, he took Andrew's two tiny arms in his hands and pushed them out of the shirt. He then took the shirt and pulled it over his head. Now that he saw Andrew's bare skin, he felt a weight fall on his chest. Dark bruises and scratches stood sharp against his white skin, and all Charlie hoped for was that the medics had seen this and wrote it down in his report.

Not wanting to alarm Andrew, Charlie pulled his gaze away from the injuries and smiled at the boy. He quickly pulled the new shirt with the drawing of a dog over Andrew's head, making his curls appear even more wilder, and then he helped Andrew find his way through the sleeves. And then Charlie proceeded with taking off Andrew's pants and underpants. He quickly pulled him on the new ones as he felt Andrew shudder. This brought up bad memories for the boy, Charlie realized and he wouldn't let them last long. He needed to distract him.

"Do you like peanut-butter?" Charlie asked the little boy, hoping to put him back at ease.

Andrew nodded while Charlie took him off the table and sat him on a chair. He took out the bread and jar of peanut-butter and started making Andrew a sandwich. The boy followed every movement Charlie made, watching him as if he tried to understand everything that was happening. He then made another one for himself to eat.

Charlie then handed over the sandwich and after a few seconds in which Andrew looked at the sandwich with distrust in his eyes, he picked it up from the plate in front of him and started eating as soon as Charlie was eating his sandwich as well. Charlie could only be glad that the kid was at least eating something. Charlie then took out the juice from the refrigerator en filled a glass for Andrew.

The ringing phone in the living room startled the boy. Charlie quickly laid his hand on his tiny shoulder and reassured him. While putting the glass in front of Andrew, he kneeled down again and looked at Andrew with a smile on his face.

"It's okay, that's probably my brother. You stay here and eat that sandwich, okay?" Charlie asked him. He waited until Andrew nodded before entering the living room and leaving the boy alone in the kitchen.

"Charlie?" Don's voice asked even though Charlie hadn't even gotten the chance to say something.

"Yes, it's me." Charlie said.

"I was just checking in. How is the little guy this morning?" Don asked.

"He's eating. Dad is gone to the get some food so I hope he brings some vegetables. A kid like him needs his vitamins."

Charlie heard Don laugh.

"Well, I had no idea how caring you could be over this kid." Don said then.

Charlie heard a second voice, then, muffled, but he recognised Colby's low voice.

"Well, I gotta go, but I'll see you at noon." he heard his brother say.

"Alright, I'll see you then." Charlie said before putting down the phone.

When he turned around and walked back into the kitchen, he found Andrew standing near the corner of the table as he clenched his sandwich in between his two little hands. His eyes stood wide with fear and he tried to make himself as small as possible, trying to hide behind the table.

Charlie didn't understand what was going on and then his gaze fell to the table. The glass of juice was empty and a large orange spot covered the table and part of the floor.

"Sorry." Andrew spoke in a soft voice which was filled with fear.

Charlie shook his head and walked to Andrew, slow as he didn't want him to think that he was mad at him. No, he needed to let Andrew know that accidents happened.

"It's okay, it's only spilled juice. I'll clean it up and give you a new glass of juice."

A faint frown appeared on Andrew's face as he didn't understand why he wasn't being punished or why Charlie wasn't mad with him. He didn't move though as he still didn't trust the situation.

Charlie took a towel from the sink and started cleaning up the mess but he would have to use a wet mop if he didn't want the floor to become all sticky. As the table was now clean, Charlie now walked over to Andrew and kneeled down besides him.

"Why don't you eat your sandwich up on that chair while I go get something to clean up the floor."

Andrew nodded and did as Charlie asked. Hoping that Andrew was fine now, Charlie quickly grabbed a mop from outside and started cleaning up the floor. In the meantime, Andrew gazed at him, taking a small bite from his sandwich now and then, but by the time Charlie had finished, so had Andrew.

"I'll get you that juice now." Charlie smiled as he filled another glass and gave it to Andrew. As he saw how Andrew took the glass hesitantly in his hands, Charlie smiled even broader at him to encouraging the boy into drinking it and so, into trusting him.

"Do you want some more?" Charlie asked Andrew then when he had emptied the glass.

Andrew only shook his head and reached out the glass back to Charlie. Charlie took it from him and placed it in the sink. He was thinking about what he could do now with the boy, but the fact was that he didn't know what would be good for him. Should he take him outside to play or would that frighten the kid? Should he let him watch TV? Charlie shook that thought away from him. A young boy like Andrew shouldn't be inside watching TV while the sun was giving so much warmth outside.

"Would you like to go outside?" Charlie asked Andrew after he had made up his mind, "I believe there is still a basketball somewhere hidden in the garden."

Andrew only moved and came of his chair when Charlie stretched out his hands towards him. Together, they walked out into the sun while Andrew let his gaze fall on every object visible. It was clear that he was taking in his environment and Charlie didn't push him. He let the boy look and waited patiently until Andrew let go of his hand, walking on the grass alone.

But he looked back every couple of steps as if to make sure Charlie hadn't gone anywhere. And like Charlie had said, there was a basketball laying near the koi pond. It was old and dirty, but for some reason, Alan had never wanted to get rid of it. He said it reminded him of Don's childhood. Charlie had never played a lot with it as he was more for the chalk and numbers.

"Here it is." Charlie smiled as he streaked away some grass from the ball, "this is actually Don's basketball."

Andrew hesitantly reached out to take the basketball in his own hands, but at hearing Don's name, he looked at Charlie with a non understanding gaze in his eyes.

"Don's is my brother." Charlie explained to him, "he was with us yesterday. He's the one standing beside me in the pictures in the house, do you remember?"

Andrew thought for a moment and then nodded.

"He's your brother?" Andrew then asked Charlie with astonishment in his voice and Charlie smiled at hearing Andrew's voice again.

"Yes, he is." Charlie laughed, "he's big brother actually. He takes care of me and wants to keep me safe."

"Where is he now?" Andrew then asked, his eyes wide with curiosity, while he put down the basketball and rolled it over to Charlie.

Charlie didn't know if the truth would be the best thing for Andrew to hear right now, but he thought he could make it sound less threatening if he explained it in words a three-year-old would understand.

"He helps good people," Charlie said then while rolling the ball back to Andrew who smiled as he laid his hands on it and then pushed it back to Charlie, "he catches bad men and makes sure they don't hurt anybody else."

Andrew's gaze then darkened and leaned into Charlie.

"Like that man from the house?" Andrew then whispered.

"Yes," Charlie answered him, his voice soft as well, "he made sure they won't hurt you any more."

**AN: Like you can see, this chapter is about Andrew coming to a safe-haven and bonding with Charlie. I thought it to be very important that we see this side of the story where Andrew learns how to trust Charlie more and more.**

**Reviews are always welcome...**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thanks again for all the story-alerts and for the reviews that were given to the previous chapter. I hope this one will be liked as well.**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help that have given me with this chapter. I'm really glad I have you two to help me out.**

**Chapter 4 – The Big Brother **

For the past few hours Charlie had kept Andrew occupied. At some point during that time Alan had come home and started to prepare lunch. To Charlie's relief he noticed his father had brought a lot of the items that Andrew needed to eat, but then again, it shouldn't have surprised him. His dad would know what to get a growing boy since he had done a lot of the cooking when he and Don were kids.

It was just before noon when Don arrived back at the house. Charlie was still playing outside with Andrew as he heard his brother's voice approaching. Apparently Andrew had heard Don's voice as well because it was then that Charlie saw the fear return full force to the child's body. His eyes darted all around him and he stopped playing and acted as if he was trying to find a place to hide.

"Hey, there," Don greeted both Andrew and Charlie. He slowly walked up to them, but kept his distance. He wasn't sure if Andrew would remember him or not. Seeing how the child was trying his best to hide behind his brother, Don realized that Andrew saw him as a threat. He watched as his eyes wide and his little hands clenched around Charlie's pants leg.

"Andrew, do you remember Don? He's my big brother," Charlie asked as he stood next to him and pointed to Don. He then bent down and stretched out his hand for Andrew. Don felt more at ease as he watched Andrew take Charlie's hand in his. They started to walk towards the house and Don when suddenly Charlie felt a tug on his hand. He stopped and bent down to hear what Andrew was trying to ask him.

"That your big brother?" Andrew whispered as he gazed at Don while speaking the word brother.  
Charlie laughed softly.

"Yes, that's Don." It was then that they noticed Alan standing behind Don. He'd come to tell them lunch was ready. As his father and brother walked towards the entrance to the house Charlie and Andrew followed. Andrew then released Charlie's hand and walked a little faster. To Charlie, it looked as if he was trying to catch up to Don.

Don slowed down his walk and when Andrew reached him, he bent down to his level. He watched the child's body visibly relax in front of him but he still wasn't as comfortable as he was with Charlie. Don noticed that Andrew's eyes still sought out his brother, but at least he was searching for other contact.

"'Do you really stop bad men?" Andrew asked with a high voice as if he couldn't believe his own words. Don softly laughed, not wanting to scare him. Then he looked up at Charlie before looking back to Andrew.

"I do the best I can," Don said.

"Charlie said you stopped the bad men at home." Andrew then asked him.

"Yes," Don smiled then, hoping that his answer would give the boy some comfort, "they are never going to hurt you again. I promise."

"And my mom?" Andrew then asked. As his eyes turned a little sad, Don felt sorry that he didn't knew who he meant. Charlie now kneeled on Andrew's other side and placed his hand on his curls. Andrew turned to Charlie and gazed straight into his eyes.

"Is mommy safe now too? I want my mommy," His breath caught and Charlie didn't know how to answer him. They had no idea who his mother was or how to find her.

"'I don't know where your mom is," Don sighed, "but I promise we'll find her." Andrew started sobbing softly and stretched out his arms to Charlie to be picked up.

"Where's my mommy?" he softly cried into Charlie's ear, but Don still heard.

"If anybody can find her, it's Don. Andrew, look at me," Charlie said, placing his hand on the child's back and slowly running it up and down trying to comfort the boy. "You'll see your mom again soon. Can you tell me what her name is?" He asked the now calmer but still crying child in his arms.

"Mommy Lauren," Andrew answered Charlie's question as he stopped sobbing.

"Well," Charlie smiled, "Don can now look for Lauren, your mom."

Andrew turned to Don questioningly. He watched with wide eyes as Don nodded, faintly smiling at him.

"But you need to be big and strong for when you see your mom again," Charlie then said, "so you need to eat all of your food okay?" Andrew's small hand rubbed away his tears and to Charlie and Don's surprise, a smile erupted on Andrew's pale face.

"Big and strong like your brother?" Andrew smiled at Charlie.

"Yeah," Charlie laughed, "like my big brother Don."

For lunch Andrew eat his plate clean without hesitating. After everything he had gone through, he was still hopeful and still capable of trusting people and Charlie knew that there was still hope for this child. He also knew that they needed to find his mother.

Andrew was tired after playing outside so Charlie took him upstairs for a nap. Once the child was safely asleep he came back downstairs and went into the kitchen. Don was sitting at the kitchen table while Alan was putting the dishes into the dishwasher.

"So, can you find her?" Charlie asked as he sat down at the table as well.

Don sighed. Alan was now listening as well and his gaze focused on Don, hoping that he would be able to tell them good news.

"We only have her first name. If I knew her last name, then I would probably find her easily but just Lauren isn't much to go on." Don told them.

"Andrew needs her," Charlie said, not wanting to give up yet, "You saw how much he misses her."

"Charlie I'm not saying that I wont look. I'm saying it's going to be hard but that I will do everything within my power to get the boy home again. I'll check the missing children's register and see if anyone is looking for him." Don said then he thought of something. "We could run a DNA-test as well and see if we get a match, but the chances are slim, Charlie."

Charlie knew Don was just trying to be honest with him, but still, it felt like he was just suppressing all of his hope. There had to be a way to find his family, to find his mother.

"We found a foster home for him," Don then suddenly said. Charlie was surprised when he felt shock. The thought of Andrew being away from him scared him. What if the boy didn't want to leave? What if he didn't like the new home? What if he doesn't belong there? What if he considered this his home now and then he gets sent away again. Andrew would feel betrayed by him.

"Charlie?" Don asked him, making him snap out of his thoughts.

"Maybe he should stay here for a few more days. Until he knows he's truly safe," Charlie suggested.

"He'll be well taken care of, Charlie. He'll go to a nice family. The mother's name is Sarah, the father's is Tom and they already have a daughter who is fourteen years old. Sarah is a psychiatrist so she knows how to take care of him, in fact, I couldn't think of any better place for him to go to."

Charlie knew Don was right, but still, his heart weighed heavy by just thinking about the idea that Andrew would be leaving soon.

"When will he be leaving?" Charlie quietly asked Don.

"It won't be until next week. Until then, he can stay here if that's still okay with you. I arranged everything with child services."

That idea made Charlie feel better.

"I have to go back to work. I'll make sure we get the results of that DNA-test as soon as possible."

"You already have his DNA?" Charlie asked him, not understanding how Don could already possess that.

"The medics took some blood yesterday when they took care of his wounds to check for any diseases or infections." Charlie watched as Don stood up and left. Then his gaze fell upon his father's smile.

"What?" Charlie asked him, a frown filling on his brow as he didn't understand why his father was standing there, smiling.

"You really care for this boy, don't you?" Alan spoke after a moment of silence. Charlie couldn't help but smile as well when he thought about his answer.

"Yes, I think so. I mean, I do care for him," Charlie then said, "I've never understood why Don is always hovering over me when I'm in pain or upset, but now," Charlie thought about it for a moment before continuing, "now I know what it feels like to want to protect someone, to actually be willing to give your life for them. Andrew is so small, so fragile and all I can think about is the best way to take care of him."

Alan laughed, pushing himself away from the sink and placing the towel he held in his hands on the table.

"Are you sure you're not confusing feeling of brotherhood with feelings of fatherhood?" Alan asked his youngest son when placing his hand on his shoulder. Charlie thought about that for a moment and he was surprised to find himself to be confused.

"I don't know, but that doesn't matter," Charlie smiled, "all that does matter is that Andrew is safe."

**AN: I am trying to portray Andrew as honest and true as possible to be a three-year-old boy. At this age, most children do know the first name of their mom and dad and they sometimes even know their last names (in this case, Andrew doesn't know that). At my home, there are 2 kids who are a little bit older than two years old and they know their parents full name. **

**I also want to let you all know that in the next chapter, the pace will be picked up and there will be more action. I just wanted to take my time to give Andrew and Charlie time to bond and to form a relationship.  
**

**I hope this chapter was liked and as always, honest feedback is appreciated.**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Wow, I was overwhelmed by all the response I got for the previous chapter. Thank you guys for the nice reviews! It really means a lot!**

**- Thank you, ****Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help, you two are simply great! -  
**

**Chapter 5 – A Visit**

Charlie was sitting at the kitchen table working on some papers that his students had turned in, as well as listening for any movement from upstairs that would tell him that Andrew had woken from his nap. It was a few minutes after he started his work that his dad walked into the room with a small smile on his face.

"I just got off the phone with Mrs. Shelby, she said that she's okay with loaning us some toys for a few days."

Charlie didn't look up from the paper he was marking as he spoke to his father.

"Mrs. Shelby?" he asked. It was true that this was Charlie's home, but with all his work for different organizations meant that he didn't get to meet many of the people moving in around him.

"She lives a few houses down. She's a nice older lady," Alan smiled as he walked to the living room to put the phone back onto the receiver. Charlie dropped his pencil and followed his father.

"Well, that's great, but why does she have toys?" Charlie asked. Alan watched as his son's mind was trying to catch up with what was going on.

"Because she gets to keep her grandkids at her house sometimes," Alan laughed as he watched how Charlie's eyes suddenly widened, finally comprehending. It made Alan smile when he thought about the fact that Charlie still possessed that same gaze of revelation when he understood something as he done as a child.

"I see," Charlie now smiled as well, "I think Andrew will like that."

"Will you be okay for the next few hours, just you and him?" Alan asked as he picked up his car keys.

"Hours? Dad, how much are you planning on borrowing from Mrs. ...?" Charlie couldn't think of the lady's name. He frowned at his father as he walked back to the kitchen.

" Shelby, son, her name is Mrs. Shelby and she never lets you go without making sure you drink at least two cups of tea," Alan heard Charlie's small laugh.

"Alright," Charlie laughed, "see you soon then!"

Charlie picked up his pencil again and focused on the paper lying in front of him. He still had a lot of work to do and now that the house was quiet, he needed to hurry because he was sure that Andrew would wake soon. Charlie read a few lines from the paper and made a quick note in the margin when something caught his attention.

He soon realized that it was a car driving by the house and he could swear that he had heard that particular engine before. It wasn't loud, but it had a knocking sound like something was off in the engine. He stood up and walked up to the front window. A dark SUV stood parked a few houses down. It seemed to Charlie that a man was trying to hide himself behind the steering wheel. As he stood looking out the window, he watched another SUV drive by and slow down as it passed.

Charlie took a few steps away from the window, letting whoever was out there think that he was gone. As he had predicted, the man from the parked SUV exited his car and signed something to the still driving SUV who now parked as well. Charlie watched as two more men stepped out of the second car and walked over to the other men who still stood near his own car.

Charlie wasn't going to take any chances with Andrew in the house. He didn't hesitate and ran up the stairs, skipping steps as he climbed up. Only one thought kept screaming at him in his head: 'Keep Andrew safe!'

Charlie opened the door of his room to find a still sleeping Andrew. He kneeled down beside the bed and gently shook him awake.

"Wake up, buddy, open your eyes," Charlie whispered to Andrew in a hard voice. He only wished he could appear calmer, more in control, but the blood was rushing through his veins as his heart pumped ten times faster than normal.

"Charlie?" Andrew asked in a weak voice as he started rubbing his eyes. He sat up and looked with fearful eyes at Charlie as he saw the distress he was in.

"You need to hide, Andrew, do you understand me?" Charlie asked the boy who was tense now.

"I don't want to," Andrew pouted as his gaze turned sad.

"I know, but this is really important," Charlie told him as he was trying to keep his voice low and reassuring, but he knew he was failing.

"Listen to me, Andrew, remember what I told you about Don?"

Andrew nodded.

"He wants to keep me safe," Charlie said as he tried to make a smile appear on his face, "He wants to keep me safe from bad men. Now I need to keep you safe from bad men."

Andrew didn't say anything; only fear became visible in his liquid brown eyes.

"So you have to do exactly as I say, alright? Can you do that?" Charlie waited a moment for Andrew's small head to shake yes.

"Don's not here, you keep me safe?" Charlie could see the fear in not only Andrew's eyes but in his small body as well, so he smiled at the boy. He placed his hands around his chest and lifted him up from the bed, taking him into his arms.

"Yes, I want to help keep you safe," he told the child in his arms.

"Okay," Andrew said. Charlie held his breath as he heard a door open downstairs. It had to be those men and Charlie knew he was running out of time. He ran to his closet and opened it, pushing his clothes aside and moving around some boxes. He sat Andrew down behind them.

"You need to stay here until I, Don or Alan come and get you." Andrew looked up at Charlie confusion clearly written in his eyes. "Do you remember Don and Alan?"

"Don is your brother. Alan is your daddy," Andrew whispered.

"That's right. And don't make any sound, can you do that for me? Can you be very quiet?" Charlie now asked Andrew as he placed his finger over his own lips as if he were making a hushing sound. He knew he was asking a lot from this boy, he knew he was scaring him as he was now hanging back his clothes in the right position, but he also knew there was no other option and he smiled again at Andrew as the little boy placed his own little finger over his lips.

"I'm scared," Andrew then whispered as his eyes started blinking more than normally and Charlie hated it that he had made Andrew cry.

"I know and I'm so sorry, but you have to stay here, alright?" Charlie told him as he felt how his own eyes began to sting. But he wouldn't allow his tears to escape. He took in a deep breath and felt himself calm down. This was going to work. Andrew would be fine and everything would soon be over.

"Stay with me," Andrew said to Charlie in a pleading tone.

"I can't," Charlie answered him as he stroked Andrew's curls out of his face, "I have to keep you safe, remember?" Andrew nodded and Charlie didn't hesitate any longer. He stood up and closed the doors of the closet.. He was relieved as he didn't hear Andrew crying anymore, but he also knew that that didn't mean there were no tears rolling down his cheeks.

Charlie turned around and walked out of his room. He kept his breathing under control even though his heart was still pumping too fast and his hands were trembling. All he wanted to do was turn around and hide as well, but he knew that if he did that, they would find Andrew as well. Charlie couldn't let that happen.

He arrived at the stairs and slowly started descending it. If he could just reach the phone, call Don, then he would come as soon as possible. Charlie cursed himself for leaving his cell phone in the kitchen because as he now entered the living room, he could hear a man in there. He quickly glanced outside and saw another man still standing with his car, the same man that he had seen first. 'So where was the third?' Charlie thought to himself.

But Charlie wouldn't wait to find out. He took the cordless phone from the living room in his hands when suddenly another arm grabbed his and used brute force to bend it into a position that made Charlie wince. He couldn't hold on to the phone any longer and had to let it drop. The man now forced Charlie to face him and he quickly saw that the man was 5 inches taller than he was. The pain in his arm brought his mind back to what was happening. He knew he needed to find a way to get his arm lose before it was broken.

"I found him!" the man yelled and only a second later, the man who Charlie had heard in the kitchen, now entered the living room.

"Good," the second man smiled.

Charlie saw that this man was shorter than the man who was holding on to him. They both had short black hair and hard gazes in their eyes, but the second man was more slender and appeared to be more elegant as the man who was holding on to Charlie simply appeared to be a bodyguard.

"It wasn't very nice of you to try and hide from us, let alone call someone," the man who was still holding Charlie's arm tight said. There was true anger visible in his eyes and Charlie swallowed when he realized that they weren't playing around.

"Where is the boy?" the second man asked while he walked up to him.

"Long gone," Charlie answered as he felt tears again well up in his eyes. This time it was caused by the pain he was feeling in his arm. But the fear he felt right now could have had something to do with it as well. However, Charlie was determined to not let it control him. He needed to keep his mind focused; he needed to get these men outside if he wanted to keep them away from Andrew.

"He was here this morning," the man said as he now applied even more pressure to Charlie's arm, making him groan in pain. He fell to his knees as he tried to ease the pain on his limb. "We heard him and we saw him," the man continued.

"Don took him!" Charlie quickly said the first thing that came to his mind.

"Don?" the second man asked him as he now took out a pair of handcuffs.

"He took Andrew to a foster home just this afternoon." Charlie could only hope his lies were believed.

"How long have you been patrolling the street?" the second man asked the one who was holding Charlie.

"Since six this morning. I was just pulling up on the street when I saw a man leaving the house."

"Did you see him take a boy?" the second man asked impatiently.

"I didn't see him leave the house, I only saw him driving away."

The second man now took Charlie's free hand and pulled it behind his back. He then grabbed his second hand which his attacker now released and locked it behind his back as well.

"Don, who is he?" the second man asked Charlie as he jerked him up from his knees, turning him around so that he would face him.

"My brother." Charlie exhaled as he still tried to ignore the pain in his wrist.

"Well, it appears that your brother knows where the boy is so I am willing to bet my head on it that you know too. Brothers tell each other everything, right?"

Charlie looked at the second man who was definitely the one in charge. He didn't even know what to answer to that; what lie he could tell them.

"Not in a talking mood?" the same man asked. Charlie decided to keep his lips sealed. He didn't let a sound escape his mouth, not even when the other man grabbed his sore wrist again. Inside, however, he was screaming in pain.

"We'll get you to talk," the man in charge said, "I promise you that."

A hard knock on his head made Charlie lose his balance. And before he even hit the ground, his vision went black, his senses numbed and just as a pair of hands grabbed his chest to keep him straight, pulling him away, Charlie lost consciousness.

**AN: Well, as promised, there was action and I hope it was liked. Let me know what you think about it...**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Waw, I'm so happy so many people stick with this story. Thank you, everybody, who reviewed, alerted or favored my story! It really means a lot and I hope this chapter will be liked as well.**

**Thank you, ****Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help. I wouldn't know what to do without you guys!**

**Chapter 6 – The little Brother **

Don had searched the missing children's register for the past hour, but he still came up empty handed. No children fitting Andrew's description had been reported as missing in the last few weeks. Don leaned back in his chair and ran his fingers through his hair. He desperately wanted answers, no not answers, he wanted the truth.

'Who was this boy? Who was Lauren? Who was the father? Why was he found in the hands of this Mark Chester and why was nobody looking for him?' Don wished he could go home later today and give Charlie the answers he had been looking for, but he knew all he would give Charlie was disappointment.

He smiled faintly as he thought about his brother caring for Andrew. He'd never seen him so overprotective nor had he seen him bonding with a young child like this before. The smile on his face became even broader as he thought about how Charlie had looked at him when he'd told him about the foster home. Don knew that Charlie would have trouble letting him go.

"Did you find anything?" Megan asked him, bringing him out of his thoughts. He looked up and noticed that she was leaning against his desk. Don took a moment to straighten his back and sighed.

"Nothing, nobody is even looking for this kid," he answered. The frustration he felt was clearly evident in his voice.

"We'll find his family," Megan replied, enfusing confidence in her words.

"I hope so," Don said to himself even though he knew that she'd heard him as well. He sighed as he opened a mail that he had just received.

"If only I could just find his mother already. Were you there when Colby interrogated Mark Chester about Lauren?" Don asked Megan slipping back into his well-worn role as the FBI agent who always got his man.

"Yes," Megan said, nodding as she thought about those few short minutes, "he claims he's never heard of her."

"Well, he's lying," Don snorted angrily as he closed the mail again. It didn't contain anything important so Don would deal with it later. Right now, Andrew was his priority.

"I don't know," Megan sighed, "he seemed honestly confused when he heard that name. I really don't think he knows her. But I bet you that he knows who Andrew's father is."

Don looked up to meet Megan's eyes. He threw her a questioning look as he waited for her to explain herself.

"All the questions about Andrew made him nervous, as if he was scared we'd find out something he'd rather keep to himself. And when Colby asked him about Andrew's dad, he suddenly started acting very tense," Megan told him as she sat down at her desk.

"So we push him into telling us who he is," Don said, not understanding what Megan was still doing here while she should be assisting Colby in finding out more.

"He asked for his lawyer," Megan explained simply, "now he's not talking at all."

Don cursed under his breath as he felt anger boil up in his chest. His ringing cell phone distracted him. He was glad to be able to focus on something else for the next few moments. When he saw it was his father calling, fear quickly replaced the anger that was inside of him.

"Dad," Don greeted his father.

"Don, you need to come home! Now!" Alan said, his voice tense. Don jumped up from his seat and already started collecting his keys and jacket.

"What's wrong, dad?" he asked, searching for eye contact with Megan to alert her that something was going on. Megan didn't hesitate and ran over to her own desk where she grabbed her jacket as well.

"Charlie's gone," Alan told Don in a high-pitched voice, "and I found Andrew hidden in the closet in Charlie's bedroom. I can't get him to calm down," Don could hear Andrew's cries in the background.

"Okay, dad, Megan and I are on our way," Don said as he left the office, heading out for his car. Megan followed him, not interrupting him but waiting patiently to ask for more information.

"Dad, where are you and Andrew?"

"We're sitting on the couch."

"Don't let him out of your sight!" Don told his dad before hanging up the phone. He turned to Megan who anxiously waited for Don to explain to her what was going on. As they entered the elevator, Don explained the very little he knew.

The drive to his brother's home lasted too long in Don's opinion. He didn't speak to Megan who sat next to him, calling Colby and David and asking them to join them at the Eppes home. When he finally turned onto the driveway, he didn't hesitate and jumped out of the car before running inside.

"Dad?" he called out as he opened the front door.

"I'm here," Alan answered to his call. Don turned around to see his father standing near the stairs. He was leaning against the wall as he gazed at the couch in front of him. Andrew sat there, his legs pulled up against his chest and his eyes red and wet from tears. His lips were pressed together and Don recognized this from the day before when he'd been shutting himself off from everybody.

Charlie had been there yesterday, now he wasn't and Don knew he needed to get the kid to trust him. But before he could focus on him, Don turned and walked up to his father.

"What happened?" he asked him as he kept his voice low so that Andrew couldn't hear it. Megan came to stand next to them and listened to what Alan had to say.

"I don't know," Alan sighed as he crossed his arms in front of his chest, "I came home about thirty minutes ago and the house was empty. The front door was unlocked, I called out for Charlie, but he didn't answer. And when I went up to his room to look for him, I found Andrew hidden in the closet. He hasn't spoken since and he's refusing to look at me."

"He was hiding in the closet?" Megan asked Alan, as she looked confused. "Maybe they were playing hide and go seek?" But somehow she knew that it wasn't the case. Don felt the same way. Something was wrong, something was horribly wrong, but Don couldn't seem to understand what.

'Where's Charlie?' Don asked himself.

"He was more like hidden in the closet," Alan corrected Megan and more confusion became visible on her and Don's faces, "he was sitting behind some boxes and Charlie's clothes were pulled in front if him. I think Charlie was trying to keep him out of sight. And then the phone," he sighed and paused for a moment, "the phone lay on the ground as if Charlie had tried to call someone but..."

"But somebody stopped him," Don finished Alan's sentence.

"So he was taken?" Megan asked while she let her gaze drop on Andrew. "You think it has something to do with him?" Don followed Megan's gaze and took in a deep breath. He thought about other possibilities for a moment, but none of them seemed to match up with the evidence so far.

"It must have something to do with the kid," Don then said after he had eliminated the other possibilities in his mind, "why else would Charlie have hidden him in the closet? He was trying to keep him safe."

The three of them stood there for a moment and looked at the boy who hadn't moved since they'd arrived. Don slowly walked up to him and sat down on the couch as well, leaving some space between them.

"Hey, there," Don said in a soft voice and like he'd expected, Andrew didn't respond, "are you okay?" Don had no idea what to say to him. Charlie had known, he'd gotten Andrew to trust him and Don cursed himself for not asking how he'd done that. Now he'd have to find a way on his own. He sighed as he thought about what would happen if Andrew couldn't ever trust him.

"You're probably scared," Don said then, speaking the first thing that came to his mind, "but you're safe. Charlie made sure of that, didn't he?" Andrew blinked a few times and then slowly turned his gaze towards Don. The boy was frightened, that much Don could see in his eyes, but there was also hurt.

"He went gone," Andrew spoke in a soft voice as if he wanted only Don to hear this.

Don placed his hand on the boy's curls and gently stroked them out of his eyes.

"He didn't want to, he never wanted to leave you," Don told the kid as he tried to make eye contact, "he tried to keep you safe. He cares very much for you."

"Gone," Andrew repeated as he threw his gaze down to his fingers, which were strangling themselves, "with them." His voice had dropped so low that Don had to think for a moment to process what he'd said. He stood up from the couch and kneeled in front of him, placing his hand on the boy's knee.

"You saw who took Charlie?" Don asked him, trying to keep his voice soft and in control, but panic still escaped with his words. Andrew shook his head and Don sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before focusing on the scared child again.

"I want to bring Charlie home, Andrew, and you can help me with that," Don faintly smiled as he watched how Andrew gazed into his eyes for a split second, "You want Charlie to come back home?"

"He nice," Andrew smiled shyly.

"He really is nice and he wants to take care of you, would you like that?"

Andrew only nodded this time and Don noticed that he was comfortable enough for him to get closer.

"Then you have to help me out, buddy," Don smiled as he gently stroked his finger over Andrew's cheek.

"You're his big brother," Andrew said as he looked at Don with confusion in his eyes, "Charlie says you keep him safe." He pulled his knees a little higher up against his chest, pulling away from Don as if he wanted to avoid contact with him.

Don pressed his lips together as he thought about Andrew's words and actions. He had failed in his eyes, Don knew that, but he couldn't blame the kid for thinking this. He was right after all. Don's job had always been to keep Charlie safe and now he needed the help of a three-year-old to get him back.

Don took in a deep breath as he shook away those thoughts. He needed to focus on getting his brother back, that's all, there wasn't any time for blame.

"I try very hard to keep him safe, but sometimes it just isn't possible. I want to keep him safe and you have to help me with that," Don told Andrew when he had full control over his emotions again, "can you tell me who those men were who took Charlie?"

"They're mean." Andrew whispered again, "I not like them."

"You don't like them?" Don asked, hoping to get more information.

"Mommy not like them."

Now Don felt like he was getting somewhere, and felt Megan come standing a little closer. She kept a safe distance however as she didn't want the boy to shut her and Don out all of a sudden. Alan remained where he stood and only watched how his son was trying his best to communicate with the boy.

"They're strong," Andrew said as his eyes widened a bit and Don saw the fear he felt just by thinking about them. "I heard them shouting at Charlie," Andrew then whispered.

"Did you hear what they said?" Don tried to find out as much as possible, but he knew that right now, he was pushing his luck. Andrew shook his head and new tears welled up in his eyes.

"I not liked it," he said softly as he tried not to cry, "was dark."

"What was dark?" Don asked even though he had a pretty good idea of what the answer would be.

"There," Andrew said as he pointed up the stairs.

"In the closet?" Don waited for Andrew to nod before he spoke again, "I'm sorry, buddy, that won't happen again."

"I don't want them here," Andrew then said and Don realized that for the moment, the boy's biggest fear was that they would come back. The fact that he shared it with him made Don smile faintly as it showed that Andrew was beginning to trust him.

"They won't come again," he reassured the kid, "those men will never hurt you. I promise."

"They hurt mommy," Andrew sobbed softly. Don swallowed heavily and sought eye contact with Megan, asking her for help. What was he supposed to respond to this?

'Hurt could mean a lot of things. Did they beat Lauren? Did they kill her? Did they lock her up?' Don wanted to know all the answers, but he knew he wouldn't get them from Andrew. He didn't even want to ask, as he didn't want Andrew to be more upset. Megan kneeled down beside Don, but didn't make physical contact with the boy.

"We'll stop them and make sure they don't hurt anybody anymore," Megan told the boy as she smiled at him, hoping he would trust her words.

"But they're very strong and even mommy not like them because they're so mean," Andrew said in one breath as if he couldn't believe that they could be stopped.

"But we are very smart," Megan countered him in a friendly voice, trying to make him understand that they could do this.

"Daddy too and he's mean and he likes them," Andrew then whispered again and Don couldn't help but throw a quick glance at Megan who was apparently thinking the same thoughts as him. It was telling that this was the first time that Andrew had mentioned his father. This case was more about Andrew than they had thought and finding out who Andrew's parents were had just become their priority if they wanted to find Charlie again.

**AN: For those who are wondering what happened to Charlie, don't worry, the next chapter is all about him so...stay tuned!**

**Let me know what you think...**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: So, what is all happening to Charlie? You'll find out here and I hope you guys will like it!**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help that have given me with this chapter. Starfishyeti, thanks for all the advice on Charlie!  
**

**Chapter 7 – Waking up**

Charlie couldn't move his arms and even opening his eyes was difficult for him to do. His head felt like it was about to explode and being thirsty certainly didn't help his cause. When he did finally manage to get a view of his surroundings, he saw that he was lying on a bed in a, to Charlie's surprise, quiet luxurious room.

With difficulty, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed, closed his eyes as he tried to make his head stop spinning, and then slowly tried to get his vision back. The room was compact, there was a small desk standing about six feet before the window and the bed he was now sitting on was made up with satin sheets. There hung Rich velvet curtains next to the windows and the walls were covered with flock wallpaper.

This confused Charlie, as he didn't know what to expect from this situation. He was locked up in a comfortable room, his hands still cuffed behind his back while his room was actually quite nice for a prison. He then heard movement outside his room and tried to get his hands loose, but nothing worked.

The door of his room unlocked and swung open. A tall, blondish white man entered and closed the door behind him. He waited for a moment before taking another step, looking closely at Charlie and then he smiled.

His teeth were perfectly white which almost seemed to match his short hair and white skin. Even his beige suit seemed to match his looks perfectly. But his eyes spoke anger and coldness as his smile never reached his emotionless eyes.

Charlie didn't know this man, and even though he'd said nothing, he already he knew he couldn't trust him. He also had to admit that the fact he was tied up after being hit on the head probably had something to do with his point of view

"You must be Charlie." the man finally spoke after what seemed minutes of silence. His voice was soft and didn't fit with his looks, but Charlie didn't trust any of his words and remained silent.

"I apologize for the...inconvenience that you're in," the man then spoke when he saw Charlie wasn't going to say anything. He walked up to the desk and pulled the chair from behind it and sat down.

"Can you release my hands and let me go home, please?" Charlie asked politely as he didn't want to sound rude. He didn't know how this man would react to certain situations so he'd rather kept him on his good side for the moment.

The man seemed to be thinking about Charlie's question for a moment and then stood up and walked up to him. He bent over him, invading Charlie's private space and making him uncomfortable. Charlie even held his breath without knowing it.

"Here you go," the man smiled when he walked back to his chair. 'But unfortunately, I can't let you go home."

Charlie slowly brought his hands to his front and gently stroked the sore skin on his wrists. He didn't dare look him in the eyes, not even to thank him as he feared that what he would see on those eyes would be only cold darkness.

"You know why you're here, right?" the man asked just as Charlie was about to ask him where he was. The man kept playing with the cuffs in his hands as if he was trying to alert Charlie that they were still in the room and they still could be placed around his hands.

"I told the others, I don't know where Andrew is," Charlie said, his voice almost a whisper as the fear he felt tried to held back his voice. He now looked up to watch how the man would react to his words. He didn't look into his eyes, though, but he saw no change in his emotions.

A smile erupted on the man's face.

"There are many things that you should know about me and the first is that I don't like to be lied to," the man said, his voice still gentle, "and second, I only want what's best for Andrew." The man almost sounded sincere to Charlie.

"Then why was he in the Marc Chester's hands?" Charlie asked him, surprised now at the strength of his voice. The words were out of his mouth before he realized it and for a split second, fury could be seen on the man's face. Charlie threw his gaze down as he tried to avoid the man's eyes.

"He was fed, he wore clothes, what more does a boy need?" the man then asked Charlie while he straightened his back.

"So you knew what he was going through? You knew what Marc Chester did to him?" Charlie cursed himself for letting his voice sound so hard and for speaking up to the man who now did nothing to hide his anger.

"That boy should be thankful!" the man yelled.

Charlie still kept his head bowed as he stared at his hands lying in his lap as he despretaly tried to keep them from shaking. He swallowed heavily and pressed his lips together.

The man cleared his throat and then smiled again.

"Certain men need special... entertainment and so I provide them with that. Andrew is just a boy and this way, I earn money with him which I can use for meaningful purposes."

Charlie couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Meaningful purposes?" he snorted. He had tried to stay calm, but hearing this man talk about Andrew like this just made his blood boil.

"I can put these back on if you don't behave," the man threatened him as he waved the cuffs back and forth in front of Charlie.

"I don't know where Andrew is," Charlie then said, "I'm not lying, I honestly have no idea. And I really ought to tell you that I'll be found and then you'll be sorry!" Charlie said as he tried to sound strong.

"Ah yes, your brother, the fed. And I think you are lying. But don't worry, if you don't tell me, I'll get my hands on your brother and we'll see how long he can keep the truth from me when you're in pain."

A soft chuckle escaped the man's lips and this time, when he was thinking about inflicting pain on Charlie, his eyes twinkled with mirth.

Again, Charlie swallowed heavily.

"Or maybe, you'll tell me when I torture Don, that's his name, isn't it?"

"Why do you even want Andrew back?" Charlie asked the man as he could no longer listen to his words. The thought alone of Don in pain while Charlie couldn't help him was torture enough, but he could never show these feelings to this cruel man.

"Because," the man now said, his gaze serious again, "I want my son back."

Now Charlie did gaze into the man's eyes for the first time without blinking or throwing his own gaze down and now for the first time he saw how dark the eyes were that stared back into his. They were an exact copy of Andrew's as they had the same liquid brown color.

"If he is your son, then why would you allow him to get hurt?" Charlie asked in a soft voice, as he needed answers to the thousands of questions that were floating in his head. He didn't know why, but he wanted to understand why this man would want his son to be in pain, why he would rent him out to a pervert.

The man honestly seemed to be thinking about this so Charlie waited patiently.

"That's a good question," the man finally said, "and you know what? I don't care." His harsh laugh made Charlie's skin crawl.

"About the question?" Charlie asked as he couldn't follow his line of thoughts.

"I never wanted Andrew, but then I learned about this whole new market. Chester paid me nearly $10 000 to have Andrew for a few days which makes it easily earned money," he laughed again, "at least he has one reason to exist."

Charlie couldn't believe how this man was talking about his own son, about his own flesh and blood. He pressed his lips together as he didn't trust himself to speak. All he wanted to do was attack this man and hurt him the same way he'd hurt Andrew. But Charlie knew he could never even get close to hurting him and afterward, he would be the one that ended up hurt as he as sure there were walking enough of those guys aruond that had come to his house.

Charlie closed his eyes and thanked the heavens that Andrew was safe now, that he was far away from this man.

"I don't care what you think about me," the man continued speaking, "and all I care about is getting that boy home."

"You'll never find him, I'll make sure of that," Charlie swore to him.

"And how are you going to make sure of that? You're not going anywhere before Andrew is here, so you certainly can't keep him safe," the man told Charlie as he looked at him with joy in his eyes. He was definitely enjoying every second of this and Charlie could only try to hold him off for as long as possible.

"So this foster home," the man now said, "is it here in LA?"

"I don't know," Charlie stuck to his story and he would not bow before this man.

"I said, don't lie to me!" the man yelled, as he jumped up from his chair and ran forward. Charlie was propelled backwards onto the bed as he was struck full in the face with a hand holding the cuffs. His eyes started burning and his vision darkened for a moment. Charlie couldn't help but cry out as he tried to block out the pain. With both of his hands, he grabbed for his nose and he felt a warm liquid gush over his lips.

When he was finally able to sit back up, he saw that the man stood a few feet away from him. His gaze still hard but his body relaxed. Charlie wiped away the blood from his noise and took in a deep breath through his mouth as he tried to calm himself.

"We got off to a wrong start as I should have introduced myself," the man apologized, "my name is Manners, Gabriel Manners."

Charlie truly didn't care about any of this, but he now knew Gabriel wasn't a normal man. One minute, he was furious and the next he was calm again. Charlie knew he could never predict Gabriel's behavior and that thought made him anxious.

"You're not getting Andrew back," Charlie exhaled as he spoke those words and he believed in them. Keeping Andrew safe was all that mattered and if that meant that Charlie would have to be here for the next few days, maybe even weeks, then he would accept that. Charlie was willing to go through hell as long as Gabriel didn't learn about the Andrew's location.

Charlie only felt sharp pain in his face again when Garbiel hit him again; he hadn't even seen the blow coming.

"You'll tell me," Gabriel whispered into Charlie's ear as he pulled Charlie's hair, making his head tilt backwards. "You'll tell me anything I want to know because in the end, I'm the strong one and you're not willing to see this through."

Charlie swallowed heavily and he tasted blood in his mouth.

"In the end," Gabriel smiled, "you'll be begging me to stop."

Gabriel pushed Charlie back on the bed and hit him in the face 's world spun again making his vision go completely dark.

"I'll be back and in the meantime," Gabriel spoke slowly, "you think about how far you want to take this."

And the last thing that Charlie heard before Gabriel left was his soft insane chuckle.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: So here is the next chapter. It focuses on Don again so you'll have to wait a little longer to find out what happened to Charlie.**

**Thanks, Starfishyeti and Chymom, for all the wonderful help.**

**Chapter 8 – The Teddy Bear**

Don had never felt like this before. There had been times when Charlie had been on some secret assignment, but each time, he was confident that his little brother would come home again. But this time... something was different, Don knew that. This time, Don wasn't sure about Charlie's fate.

'Where was he? Who'd taken him? Was he hurt? Was Andrew truly involved?' So many questions floated around in Don's mind and with each question, he felt like he was getting further away from the answer.

So he needed to set some things straight. He knew Andrew didn't like the men who'd taken Charlie, which told him that Andrew knew them. He'd also learned that they'd hurt his mother, Lauren and that his father liked them.

Don sighed, not knowing where to even begin searching for his brother. Time was running, time Charlie probably didn't possess and all Don could do, was try and find out who Andrew's father was.

He turned his gaze to the break room where Alan and Andrew were. Fearing that the men might return, Don had wanted them close by. Sure, he could have arranged to have some agents watch them at the house, but he felt certain that they were safer here in the office.

And Andrew seemed to feel at ease around Alan, he had been the one to release him from the closet after all. He didn't like being touched yet so Alan kept his distance and hoped that Andrew would with time let him get closer, but he didn't push it.

Don thought again about the ride to the FBI building. Andrew had only asked him one question.

"Where's Charlie? He coming back?" the kid had asked him.

Don had told him Charlie would be fine and that he'd be coming home soon, but now he feared that he might have lied.

Colby walked up to him and handed him a file.

"I think this might interest you," he said as he watched Don open it. Colby stood by patiently while Don silently read the file.

"He's his son?" Don exhaled as he reread the results of the DNA-test again. He read it a third time as he needed to be absolutely certain that he'd read it right.

"Yeah," Colby confirmed, "Charlie's in big trouble if he's the one that took him."

"Gabriel Manners. One of our most-wanted. Wanted for human trafficking, drug trafficking, murder and so on," Don pinched his nose as he read the long list.

He'd never met Gabriel, but he'd heard about all the cases that were being built up against him. Great. If only they could find him.

"So Andrew is Gabriel Manners' son," Don sighed, as he still couldn't believe this, "which means that he's probably the one who rented him out to Marc Chester and he's probably the one that now wants him back."

"Charlie would never tell him where Andrew was," Colby said, thinking about how much Charlie cared for that little boy.

"I don't know," Don mused, his voice trembling a little as he spoke, "there are a lot of things Gabriel can do to him."

"You mean torture him." Unfortunately Colby had had first hand experience of how cruel people could be.

"Go interrogate Marc Chester again. Find out if he knows where we can find Gabriel. Who knows maybe we'll catch a break." Don ordered Colby. He didn't even want to think about his statement. Torture... Don felt his blood boil as he thought about this man hurting his brother.

He took in a deep breath as he tried to calm himself. He needed to stay focused if he wanted to bring Charlie home as soon as possible. He stood up and walked to the break room. He owed it to his dad to tell him the news. He wasn't looking forward to it though.

Before he reached the door, Megan brought him to a stop by standing in front of him.

"I need to talk to you," she said and nodded her head at a woman who stood a few feet away. The uncomfortable looking woman gazed at all the desks and busy agents. She obviously felt a little intimated.

"I really need to talk to my dad about Andrew and Charlie," Don protested, "actually, you should be there as well."

"That's Sara Reid." Megan said quickly.

"The foster mom?" and he took a longer assessing glance at the woman. She had long brown hair and pale skin. Although dressed casually and looking a little awkward, she seemed a strong woman.

"Wait, Andrew was only going to move next week, not today," Don said a little panicked.

"Child services heard what happened and thought this to be an unstable environment for a small boy like Andrew. They want him to have stability as soon as possible so they told Sara everything and she agreed on taking him earlier," Megan explained.

"He has a home, with us, with Charlie," Don said as he now looked at Megan again, "he's fine with us."

Megan only looked him in the eyes and Don sighed, understanding what that look meant.

"You know, it's never good to get close to a victim..."

"His name is Andrew."

"I know," Megan said, a little agitated with Don interrupting her, "but you knew this was coming, you knew Andrew would leave one day."

Don shook his head. But as much as he didn't want to believe this he couldn't disagree with her. He rubbed his hands through his hair and took in a deep breath.

"Gabriel Manners is Andrew's father."

Megan's mouth dropped open, "Manners?" she asked shocked.

"I think he's the one that took Charlie because he wants his son back."

This time, it was Megan who took in a deep breath.

"Manners is..." she thought about her words for a moment, "well, if you want to describe him in one word, insane. I've spent some time working on one of his files a few months back, making a profile for the FBI. He's unstable and that's what makes him a dangerous criminal. We can't predict his moves."

"Well, we'll have to find a way to find him because Charlie needs us right now."

"And child services wants Andrew with her," Megan said as she pointed to Sara, bringing that topic up again.

"I'm not just going to let her take him. He's still in danger. I'll put him in witness-protection if I have to. I'll do anything to keep him with us for now."

"That's only postponing the inevitable," Megan said, but she didn't sound as if she was judging Don and then she smiled, "but that might just work for a few days."

"That's all I need," Don now smiled as well.

"Sara!" Megan called her over.

Sara immediately came walking over to them, seeming pleased that she would have something to do.

"This is Special Agent Don Eppes. Andrew's been staying with his brother," Megan introduced her.

"I've only known that boy for a short while and I already know he's a wonderful kid," Don smiled as he shook Sara's hand.

"I'm looking forward to meeting him," Sara smiled back.

"Unfortunately, he's been put under witness-protection so you won't get to take him home with you just yet," Don said, opening the door to the break room. Andrew sat on a chair, holding a teddy bear that Alan had given him. Alan sat close next to him, making sure he was alright.

"Hey dad," Don greeted him, "hey buddy."

Andrew looked up and smiled faintly at Don.

"A bear," he said as he showed him his new toy. Don kneeled down in front of him, feeling pleased that Andrew was opening up to him again. He had disappointed him earlier today and Andrew had refused being touched by him, but now they seemed more at ease around each other.

"It's really pretty," Don said in a soft voice, gently petting the bear's head. "Do you remember Megan?"

Andrew shifted his gaze to Megan and then nodded.

"Good," Don smiled, "and that nice lady there is Sara."

Andrew looked at the second woman standing near the door. He didn't smile or showed any emotion towards her. He simply turned to Don and held on to his teddy bear even more firmly.

"Who is she?" Andrew asked Don, keeping his voice low and bending over to Don a little.

Don smiled at Andrew, trying to make him feel at ease.

"She's a very nice lady who I think you're going to like very much," Don answered.

Sara took a steps forward until she stood behind Don and then kneeled down as well.

"Hello, Andrew," she greeted the boy in a sweet voice, smiling confident, "my name is Sara and I'm very happy to finally be able to meet you."

Andrew gazed at Sara for a moment and then looked at Don again as if he was trying to see in his eyes if he was allowed to trust her.

"You look like a very smart boy," Sara continued, streaking away some hair behind her ear, "and I bet you're very nice as well."

"A bear," Andrew then said to her, showing his teddy bear again.

Sara smiled even broader and gently brushed the bear's ear.

"He's very lovely, he's one of the prettiest I've ever seen so you'll have to take good care of him," Sara said as she now took a small step closer to the boy, now kneeling down besides Don.

"Like a little brother," Andrew said with wide eyes as he looked at Don again. A smile filled his face and Don felt compelled to smile along. Andrew felt honored to be able to take care of this teddy bear like Don took care of Charlie.

"Yeah," Sara laughed softly, "and you'll be great in it."

"He should be going to bed," Alan said as he watched how Andrew was growing tired. It had been a long day for him, a terrifying day and it would be best if a new one would soon start for the boy.

"That's a good idea," Sara said, standing up now while Don followed her example.

"Is it okay if I come by your house tomorrow? It's best if Andrew gets to know before he moves in with me," Sara whispered to Don, not wanting Andrew to know yet. For him, the thought of having to live with other persons, could be terrifying so Sara wanted him to ease into it.

"That's a good idea," Don smiled, understanding that Sara would actually be a good thing that would happen to Andrew, but then again, so would Charlie. If he was only home to be able to take care of the kid, maybe everything would run differently.

As Alan took Andrew home, followed by two FBI-cars to keep an eye on them, and Sara left the building, Don was back to focusing on finding out where Gabriel Manners could be.

David, who had Colby's assistance, now returned from the interrogation, but Chester still kept his mouth shut and refused to tell them anything so that didn't help them any.

"We need to get him home, David," Don sighed as he had just listened to what David had said, "I feel like the longer he stays in Gabriel's hands, to less chance we have in getting him home safely."

"We'll find him." David encouraged Don.

"You don't..." Don stopped talking for a moment and then continued as he looked up to meet David's gaze, "he's wanted for torture as well. His last two victims were found ditched in some alley and they died fourteen hours later because of their wounds."

David didn't know what to say to that, he only knew that he now felt as desperate as Don felt.

"And they were only missing for three days."

David swallowed heavily and he watched Don close his eyes and tried to calm himself down.

"So we need to find him because if we don't..."

"We're not going to find him in some alley, Don," David then said, trying to believe in his own words, "we'll get him home and he'll see that Andrew is still safe."

"I hope so." Don sighed, horrified when thinking about what his little brother could be all going through.

**AN: I'm looking forward to read the responses to this chapter!**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: From now on, I'm sorry to inform you that the chapters will be coming a little bit slower than usual. I started college this week and things are hectic around here, but that doesn't mean that I won't think about this story. I will try and update as soon as possible, hopefully during next week, but I can't promise anything. **

**But those are worries for later. All I can tell you now is...enjoy this chapter!**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help that you guys have given me with this chapter.**

**Chapter 9 – Hard Times**

Charlie lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, or at least, he tried to. Keeping his eyes open was difficult to do, as he felt so tired. He just wanted to sink into some deep sleep and only wake up to find himself asleep on his couch with Andrew safely asleep in front of him.

He tried to turn onto his left, but halted as his side screamed out in pain. He gently brushed his fingers over the sore skin and when he lifted up his shirt, he saw a dark blue bruise covering his whole side. He sighed as he remembered how hard Gabriel had kicked him there.

The second time he had come to Charlie, only forty minutes had passed. When he had refused to tell him anything new, he had thrown him on the floor and he had kicked him until Charlie had lost conscious. He had woken up some time later to find himself alone again.

Now, after he had managed to crawl on the bed, he considered what else Gabriel could possibly do to him. The door swung open and Gabriel entered with anger clearly written on his face. He closed the doors behind him for a third time and sat down on the same chair.

"Good to see you awake," Gabriel smiled and Charlie honestly didn't know if he meant that in a good way or not. Pushing himself up from the bed, he took in a few deep breaths as he tried to forget the pain that erupted in his side.

"Are you ready to cooperate now?" Gabriel asked, crossing his legs. Charlie pressed his lips together.

"I guess not," Gabriel sighed, "but one way or another, I always seem to find the answers I'm looking for." A smile played around the corners of his lips before turning serious again.

"I don't know..." Charlie said, his voice weak, "Andrew is gone."

Gabriel laughed softly. Walking over to the window, he took a moment to let his gaze linger outside before returning it to Charlie. Charlie himself had not yet found the courage to look out the window. Now, sitting seemed the wisest options as he was sure he wouldn't be able to make it to the window without having to fight for more air. When Gabriel turned around again, a grin played around his lips.

"You really don't learn, do you?" Gabriel asked, "I told you that I want to the truth and yet... you keep lying to me," Gabriel stared into Charlie's eyes as if he was truly trying to understand why he would do this, why he would keep up with the lies.

"I'm not...."

"DON'T LIE!" Gabriel yelled at Charlie. It only took him three steps to reach him. With one good hit, Charlie fell back to the bed again. Gabriel then grabbed Charlie's arm and bent Charlie's wrist in an unnatural position.

"I only need to push a little harder and you have a broken wrist," Gabriel said as if stating a simple fact, "and trust me, this is only the beginning." Charlie cried out as Gabriel started pushing just a little bit harder.

"Andrew is..." he sighed, "safe," Charlie was surprised with himself as he heard a soft laugh escape his own mouth. The next sound that could be heard in the room was the snapping of his wrist as Gabriel broke it. Charlie screamed with the pain that radiated up his arm.

"Maybe you are ready for the next level," Gabriel said, dropping Charlie's hand.

Charlie cradled it with his good hand as he fought back the tears that welled up in his eyes. The pain was hard to ignore and he bit his lip. He didn't want to give Gabriel the pleasure of seeing how much pain he really was in.

"You're strong," Gabriel said as he took a step back to watch how Charlie was trying to control the pain, "you don't look strong, but you are." Gabriel seemed honestly surprised by that fact. "I guess you really care for that boy if you're willing to see this through."  
Charlie didn't answer as he didn't trust his voice at this moment. It could well be that he didn't even possess a voice at this moment.

"Have I ever told you that I'm known for always finding out the truth?" Gabriel continued speaking, "When people see me walk into the room after a few hours like we are sharing now, and they see I'm holding a knife, well...they simply can't resist anymore. To be honest, I find myself quite creative with sharp objects." He chuckled softly.

"You're not getting him," Charlie insisted. He needed Gabriel to believe him.

"How heroic," Gabriel smiled, showing some admiration as he watched how stubborn Charlie was, "but we'll see how long you can keep up with it as I carve into your skin."

Charlie couldn't help but swallowing as the words sank into his pain-filled thoughts. Gabriel darkly smiled for a last time and then headed for the door.

"I guess," he said before walking outside the room, "that I'll see you soon." He locked the door behind him again and Charlie started to pant. He closed his eyes as he let out a soft whimper. His pulse pounded in his wrist and moving his fingers had become very difficult. His jaw was painful as well and his upper lip felt like it had become twice its normal size. He gently stroked his finger over and noticed the amount of blood covering it.

"Are you him?" a voice asked through the door. Charlie jumped up from the bed, startled by the sudden new voice. He shouldn't have done that as his world turned to black for a few moments. He needed to sit down again and tried to take in a few deep breaths to regain control over his body.

"Are you Charlie?" the voice asked again, softer now. It definitely belonged to a woman. The door opened and Charlie looked as a beautiful young woman entered. She couldn't be much older than 25. Her shoulder-long brown hair curled up and framed her face while she possessed dark green eyes that seemed to pierce right through him.

She held a bowl and for a moment, Charlie feared that perhaps it contained boiling water. But seeing that the woman could hold onto it without any protection told Charlie that it wasn't too hot. Over her shoulder lay a small towel.

"Can I...?" the woman asked as she gestured to his face, "I don't want to harm you." Charlie tried to think about what she could possibly be up to. He reminded himself that Gabriel could be using her to get more information out of him.

She walked up to Charlie and sat down next to him, placing the bowl in between them. She wet the towel with the warm water and gently started cleaning Charlie's lip. He didn't move as he anxiously watched what next move this woman would make. But she only kept cleaning him and Charlie reluctantly felt grateful towards her.

"About Andrew..." the woman said after a long pause. Charlie sighed inside as he thought that he had been right after all. She had been sent by Gabriel.

"You said you don't know where he is, but I think you do," the woman said, her voice still soft as she now started cleaning Charlie's chin. "and I wanted to thank you."

Charlie frowned as he watched the woman smile at him.

"Can you promise me that you won't tell Gabriel where he is?" the woman then asked as she stopped cleaning Charlie's chin, looking straight in the eyes and waiting for an answer.

"I don't..." he started, but she cut him off.

"Please," the woman seemed to beg him, "I need to know that you'll do anything you can to keep Andy safe."

"Andy?" Charlie asked. He could hear the obvious love and anguish in her voice.

"Please."

"Yes," Charlie then said, nodding his head softly as he couldn't stand sudden movements, "I promise."

"Thank you," the woman smiled. She bit her lip as she finished up cleaning Charlie's face, standing up and picking up the bowl of water. "I'll try and get you some ice for your wrist. And if I can, some painkillers"

"He doesn't know, does he?" Charlie asked her as she was about to leave, "He doesn't know you're here."

"No," the woman sighed, "I'll be right back."

"Wait!" Charlie called out to her, "you're her." He looked closely at her. "Andrew asked for you. You're..."

"Lauren," the woman smiled, "and he asked for me?" Her voice broke at the end of her sentence.

"He misses you."

Lauren nodded her head as she fought back her tears. She pressed her lips together, but that didn't prevent her soft sob. A tear rolled down her cheek which she quickly wiped away.

"I'll be right back," she said once she had control over her voice again. She closed the door behind her, leaving Charlie alone with his fear and his pain. His eyes filled with tears at how broken she seemed when thinking about Gabriel laying his hands on Andrew again. He took in a shaky breath and lay back down on the bed. He turned his thoughts to the project he'd been working on before all this had blown up in his face. It was better than thinking about the immediate future and his terror that he wouldn't be rescued in time.

However, he couldn't help one thought from pushing through.

'Don, where are you?'

**AN: Let me know what you think about it, all reviews, good or bad, are welcome...**


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: I know it has been such a long time since I posted a new chapter, but here it finally is. I will post the next one as soon as possible and in the meantime, just enjoy this chapter...**

**Thank you, ****Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help.  
**

**Chapter 10 – Her Story**

Don sat at his desk, staring into the distance as he let his thoughts run freely. It was getting late, but he wasn't planning on going home already. It was only this morning that Charlie had been taken by a mad man. Hours later they were still no closer to bringing him home.

The fact that Andrew was Gabriel Manners' son gave them the answer as in to who had taken him, but that didn't tell them anything about where Charlie was being held. It only made Don more anxious as he now knew that he wasn't safe at all. The more Don sat there, the more his fears came to him. Was Charlie being tortured? Was Gabriel making Charlie cry out in pain? Was Charlie calling out for Don to come and save him? Would they be able to save Charlie from him or would he lose his brother to this man?

"Don?"

He was startled by the sudden voice, but quickly realized it was only Colby who was standing next to his desk. When he looked around, he saw that everybody was still working on the case and that comforted him. Everybody was doing their best to find his brother.

"We might have caught a break," Colby continued as he saw that he had Don's attention, "Marc Chester is breaking, he wants to make a deal."

"Well then," Don said, not understanding why Colby was even here, "just make sure we get an address or something that can lead us to Charlie."

"He wants less jail-time," Colby said, sighing when thinking about it.

"How much?" Don asked, already wincing inside, as he knew that it would be hard to arrange.

"He's onto us, he knows we're desperate… 10 years."

"10 years?" Don exhaled, as he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Does he actually believe he'd only get this much time? He deals drugs, he murdered seven people that we know of and he raped at least three under-aged victims. He'll be lucky if we manage to get him off death row!" Don ran a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself down. How dare this guy try to play them like this, but could they risk the chance that Mark could tell them were Charlie was?

"That's why I said to stick it where the sun don't shine," Colby knew why Don was giving him a disappointed look. He'd let his emotions judge him and thereby had potentially ruined their only chance of getting more information out of him.

"That newest member," Don said, just thinking about something, "work on him. I believe he knows something that can help us and he's still fragile as he doesn't really know how this business works. If we push him enough, I think we can break him and get what we want. Ask Megan to join you in the interrogation."

Simply nodding Colby left to get Megan's help. Don's eye lingered on him as he wanted to be present during the interrogation itself, but he knew he'd only let his emotions control him. He needed to keep away as he had to try and stay objective. His priority was to get Charlie back in one piece but he couldn't afford to lose any convictions by being too involved.

As he turned to his computer again, running another background check for Gabriel Manners, he could only hope that this time, he would find something interesting to lead them to Charlie.

* * *

Having not had a visit from Gabriel for some time now, Charlie started feeling a little more relaxed. Maybe this meant he could catch some sleep tonight despite the fear that was a lump in his throat. He stared out the window, still not having actually looked through it and saw only the dark cloudy sky. Not even the moon was visible.

Two short knocks sounded and Charlie quickly turned his gaze towards the door, his pulse quickening. To his relief it was Lauren, this time holding a glass of water, some bandages and a few pills.

"I'm sorry it took me so long," she apologized, "Gabriel was keeping an eye on me, but he's busy now so I don't expect him to turn up within the next hour."

"Thank you," was all Charlie could say.

Lauren closed the door behind her and sat down next to Charlie. She first gave him the pills and then the glass.

"Don't worry, they're just pain meds. I know it's hard to trust me, but this will help you, so please," she paused a moment to gesture to the pills now laying in Charlie's hand, "take them."

Charlie hesitated for another moment, but then did as she asked him. She only smiled back at him and then took his broken wrist gently in her hand and slowly placed the bandage around it.

Charlie couldn't help but wince now and then and couldn't stop shaking. Large purple bruises, now easily visible on his skin, lead up all the way to his elbow. His fingers felt numb and thick.

"How did you end up here?" Charlie asked Lauren as she worked on his wrist. There were many reasons he asked her this. He wanted to be distracted from what she was doing and he was just plain curious as he couldn't understand how a nice woman like her could end up here.

Lauren laughed softly, but there was no joy in it. She didn't look up from his hand as she answered, not wanting to see his reaction.

"Being young and naïve, I guess," she answered with a soft, sad voice, "I had no home, no family and I felt so lost. When I met Gabriel, he was like my savior, the only one who took any interest in me," She paused a moment, thinking about how she could best explain her story to Charlie. "I was 18 and had nowhere to go so Gabriel took me in and I felt... special. The first time I came to this house was like a fairytale coming true. I knew he did things, horrible things, but like I said, I was young and I just ignored it."

She now looked up to meet Charlie's gaze. He didn't know how to reply to this and he certainly didn't know how she felt about this. All he did know was that she felt pain while reliving her life, so he didn't interrupt her and let her finish her tale.

"And then I turned 21 and discovered I was pregnant. I thought about running away, I knew that would have been the best thing to do, but I couldn't. Not that Gabriel stopped me, he didn't even know about my idea, or at least, I think he didn't know," Lauren explained, seeing Charlie's questioning look as he wondered why she hadn't run away when she'd had the chance, "I just had no place to go, remember. I was older, but I still wanted to believe in Gabriel. He was still sweet to me after I'd told him about the baby. He wasn't mad or furious so I believed he was looking forward to being a father. I thought, stupid as I was, that he'd love him."

Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to let them escape. She threw her gaze down again and focused on taking care of Charlie's wrist.

"And then Andrew was born and I learned the truth. I tried to run away with him then. I tried to escape, but this time Gabriel did stop me. I still have the scars from his punishment on my back. I would've tried to escape again and again if he hadn't have punish Andy with me."

When she thought about Gabriel hurting Andrew because of her, tears did escape and started rolling over her cheeks. She finished her work and made sure the bandage would stay in position before looking up again, her eyes brilliant because of the tears.

"And then one morning I wake up to find my boy gone. I felt such... a horrible mother. I'd tried to protect him, you have no idea how hard I tried, and yet, he was gone. That was two weeks ago and then I learned about you. When I heard that Gabriel couldn't lay one finger on my son again, I actually cried for happiness. That's why you need to protect him, Charlie," she looked him straight in the eyes as she spoke, "you have to keep him safe."

"I will," Charlie now understood part of what Andrew had already gone through during his short life. Lauren smiled at him as she placed her hand on his cheek.

"Thank you," she smiled. She took in a deep breath and quickly cleaned her face of tears. She was silent for a moment, thinking about things Charlie could only guess about, but her next words surprised him.

"I need to get you out of here," she said, combing away her dark brown hair, "if you don't tell Gabriel where Andy is soon, he'll kill you, so you need to escape. I see how much you care about him and I know Andy cares about you because he's such a lovely boy. He needs somebody like you."

"Like me?" Charlie didn't know what she meant by that. "He needs you, if you help me get out of here, then you're coming with me."

She seemed to be thinking about that for a moment and Charlie didn't understand why. Why would she even hesitate about escaping if this meant that she could again be with her son?

"What if all Andy needs is a fresh start?" she then asked and Charlie could see in her eyes that this was what she feared. "What if I now remind him about everything bad that has happened to him?"

"He loves you," Charlie said, knowing that what he said was the truth, "he needs you, he needs his mother."

"Then we'll go together," Lauren said, smiling faintly. She stood up and took the glass that Charlie was still holding in his good hand. "I'll come back as soon as possible, just... hold on."

Charlie could only smile at her and watch her leave the room. For the first time since being taken, he felt hope again. If Don couldn't get to him sooner, then he would just have to get to Don.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: here is the next chapter, I hope it will be liked.**

**I will try and update as soon as possible!**

**Thank you, Starfishyeti and Chymom, for helping me out again!**

**ENJOY**

**Chapter 11 – Plans set in motion**

It had been more than a day since Charlie had been taken. Don looked at his watch seeing that the 24-hour mark had passed since he had last seen him. A new day had arrived; the night had passed too quickly in Don's opinion, but still, Charlie wasn't safely home. He hadn't slept since he the situation had kicked off and even though he had already worked sometimes three days without sleep, Don couldn't help but feel tired. From the time he knew his brother was missing, he hadn't been able to close his eyes for more than a minute. He wanted to find him and bring him home safe. In order to do that he needed to be working just as Charlie would do for him if he were the one who'd been taken.

Not only his body felt exhausted, his mind as well, as he couldn't stop worrying.

He wearily stood behind a two-way mirror, watching Colby and Megan talking to the youngest member of Mark Chester's gang. The guy was only 24 years old, but already had a criminal record that could fill an entire book. It was a shame really, as Don thought that this man also was smart. He could have become an architect or doctor if he hadn't become a drug-addict.

But many lives didn't turn out as they were supposed to and Don knew that better than any else. He dealt with that harsh reality every day. He saw how a person's life could change in one second, he had seen it enough when he brought them bad news.

But this time, his own life could change forever, his father's life, even his colleague's lives. What if he wasn't able to bring Charlie home safely? Would Don still be able to do his job? Would his father's smile still light up his face, knowing that one son couldn't save the other? What would happen to Andrew?

Don didn't want to think about all those possible scenarios. He needed to stay positive, as he needed to be with any other case. But he knew he couldn't fool himself. This wasn't any other case; this was Charlie's case so Don never took part in the interrogations. He knew he'd lose his temper and over step his boundaries.

He was brought back from his thoughts as the door opened. David walked in with another file under his arm. Don quickly glanced at it, but he didn't even need to read the title to know it belonged to Gabriel Manners'.

"I searched for last known residences, but I came up empty," David said, "I'm sorry, Don."

Don didn't answer immediately as he needed to think through what David had told him. It wasn't anything new, as he had never expected Gabriel to be so careless. Of course they wouldn't know where he was last seen.

"How's it going in there?" David asked, nodding towards Colby and Megan.

"I don't know," Don sighed, looking at how determined the guy appeared into remaining silent, "he fears Chester more than us. Or maybe he fears Gabriel more, I haven't quiet figured that part out."

And then something shifted inside the other room. Colby bowed forward, his face only inches from the other man's. Megan remained cool and distant as she watched with small eyes at what Colby was doing and saying. And then they both stood up, looking down on the man who now bowed his head.

Don hurried out of the room, knowing David was following him only steps behind. Colby and Megan were just exiting the interrogation room when they ran into each other.

"We have an address." Colby smiled, holding up a tiny piece of paper on which a few words were scribbled.

* * *

Charlie hadn't slept all night for fear of Gabriel trying something. Not knowing what was going to happen next ran through his head. So he had forced himself to stay awake; the pain in his wrist was really helping there. Unfortunately, or fortunately in this case, the pain meds weren't working anymore and Charlie hoped that Lauren could bring him some more.

And then the door opened. Charlie didn't hesitate but just jumped up from his bed, backing into a corner. Instinct had taken over. Lauren walked in, a fearful gaze filling her eyes.

"We have to go now!" she whispered in a hard voice.

"What's happening?" Charlie asked, not fully trusting this situation.

"Nobody's watching us, nobody's followed me. We'll only get one chance at this, so we need to be quick," Lauren explained, extending her hand for Charlie to take.

Charlie swallowed heavily. This was it; he was about to escape from this hell. He was about to leave Gabriel behind and go tell Don all that had happened to him.

"Okay," he exhaled, taking in a deep breath then as he knew there would be no turning back, "let's go."

Lauren simply smiled as she dropped her hand.

"Great, I'm going to see Andy again."

"I know," Charlie told her, smiling as well as he saw her face light up when thinking about that moment, "he'll be so thrilled."

Lauren took a moment to look into Charlie's eyes as if she was trying to determine if he was telling her the truth and not just the words that he thought she would want to hear. Apparently, what she saw pleased her as her smile broadened.

She quickly turned around and walked forward when suddenly, Gabriel appeared out of nowhere. His grin was sardonic as he pressed his body against that of Lauren, her face only inches away from his.

Charlie could only watch in shock as he heard her cry out in pain and then as she fell silent. The only thing holding her limp body up was Gabriel's arms. He watched as Gabriel opened them and let her body fall to the floor.

He couldn't move, nor speak nor breathe. He could only watch as Lauren lay on the ground, her eyes shut, her face filled with pain. He didn't even know if she was still alive, the only thing he did know was the fact that Gabriel was still holding the long sharp knife in his hand, now moving it between his fingers, a grin playing around his lips.

"She's been a pain in the ass," he said as he let his gaze linger over her body before looking Charlie straight in the eyes, "but not as much as you."

* * *

Don had a clear view of the house they were about to invade. It was a villa surrounded by large black fences and green grass. Now that the sun shone, the walls of the house seemed to illuminate the entire environment with a bright blue that nearly matched the water of the swimming pool. It looked picture perfect, almost a painting

As he sat in the van, Don couldn't help but think about how badly he just wanted to storm inside that house. He was lucky Colby and David were sitting next to him. They would keep his mind focused on getting the job done.

"Okay," David said, "Ian's spotted four guards outside, he can take them all out."

"Tell him to wait on my signal," Don told him, knowing that the last thing they needed to do was alert everybody of their presence.

"The SWAT-team's ready," Colby said as he was listening to someone giving him a message through his ear piece, "they've spotted three guards inside so far."

"Seven guards," Don sighed, feeling like something was off, "that's not a lot of guards for a such a criminal as Gabriel Manners."

"Megan told us Gabriel feels like a semi-God. He probably thinks he doesn't need many guards as he assumes he's safe here," David explained to Don.

He'd been at the meeting where they'd discussed the best strategy for invading the house, but he had quickly tuned out the chatter. His thoughts had been with Charlie the whole time as Don knew that he wouldn't be safe in there when the SWAT-team busted in. What if he got shot? What if they were simply already too late?

Colby's question brought him back to reality.

"What were you saying?"

"Everybody's in position. They're waiting on your signal."

Don looked at the house again. It hadn't changed since the last time he had gazed at it, but somehow, it appeared more violent. Charlie was in there, Don knew he was in there and so was Gabriel. He had to be.... And when Don entered, he would find Charlie and take him home. And all this he prayed, they could leave behind.

A faint smile appeared on his face as he thought how happy his little brother would be to see Andrew again, to see that he was still safe.

"Don?" Colby asked again.

"Let's go."

**AN: So...thoughts, opinions, suggestions, you can all let me know by hitting that green button...**


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Here is the next chapter. I hope it will be liked. **

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help. I honestly don't know what I would do without your help!**

**Chapter 12 – End Goal**

Charlie could only gaze into Gabriel's eyes. At first he was frightened doing this, but now the shock had taken over his entire body. His breathing quickened as he watched Gabriel take a step closer to him, simply stepping over Lauren's body as if she had become an object. Charlie was left to judge for himself if she was alive or dead. He swallowed heavily as the thought hit him that if she were dead, Andrew wouldn't get to tell her goodbye.

"Now see what you caused," Gabriel said as he kept on twisting the knife between his fingers.

Charlie could only take a step back as Gabriel started to slowly stalk him. He continued to back up until his legs hit the small desk in the room, but he wasn't going to let him come any closer, not while holding that knife. He stepped to the left and quickly placed himself behind the desk. This only seemed to please Gabriel as his face lit up in a cold smile.

"You did this, not me," Charlie said, watching the knife more than the man holding it. He knew that arguing with him meant more fun for Gabriel.

"You both tried to escape," Gabriel said, serious now as he simply stood at the other end of the desk, "you had secret meetings with her." Gabriel's gaze dropped down to Charlie's still bandaged wrist.

Charlie couldn't help but follow his look as he brought up his injured arm to his chest, cradling it with his other arm.

"You really thought I didn't know?" Gabriel chuckled, "Aren't you supposed to be a genius?"

Charlie pressed his lips together. He didn't know what to do or say. He felt his eyes start to prick with tears, but he couldn't let Gabriel see. He wouldn't show weakness in front of him. Charlie could only hope that Don would find him soon.

"I would have stopped her, but then I thought," Gabriel shrugged his shoulders, "you might even tell her where Andrew is."

Gabriel turned around on his heels and walked back to the door, closing it carefully. Charlie had no idea what would happen next, he could only hold his breath as he prayed that he wouldn't attack him.

"But no," Gabriel said, his voice low and filled with anger, "you just... promised not tell me."

"And I will keep that promise," Charlie was surprised by the strength of his own voice. He knew that Don would be strong if he were here, so he decided to keep it up. He needed to be like him; he couldn't just give up.

"Lauren did things I didn't like very much," Gabriel whispered, "and look where that got her. You really want to keep up this tough guy act?"

Charlie couldn't help but glance at Lauren's body as he heard those quiet words. He didn't want to die, but he couldn't tell him where Andrew was either.

"Why do you want Andrew back so badly?" Charlie couldn't get his head around it.

Gabriel walked over to the bed and sat down, a grin on his face as he looked Charlie straight into his eyes.

"I quickly realised that you weren't going to be broken easily. Even though I was quite surprised. I mean you're only a teacher," Gabriel said dismissively as he thought about Charlie's question, "so I'll give you two choices."

Charlie swallowed heavily as he knew they weren't going to be any choices that were going to be in his favour. He didn't need to be a genius to figure that one out!

"You give me Andrew and you don't give him any second thought, you can just live your life like nothing happened," Gabriel laughed then while he watched Charlie's face pale even further, "or I take Don, your brother, and sell him. I contacted some of my... friends and many have some kind of grudge against him. He did put away a lot of our guys. They would love to lay their hands on him and are willing to pay great sums of money to have that opportunity."

"Sell me," Charlie didn't know why he said that; it just escaped his lips. The thought of either Don or Andrew being hurt just sent shivers down his back.

Gabriel laughed even louder, his eyes brilliant as he gazed at him. His mouth remained shut however, but that alone made Charlie realise something shocking.

"You're going to sell me anyway," he whispered.

"You're a mathematical genius, Charlie," Gabriel explained." You're worth more than Don and Andrew together. Lauren sometimes was worth a lot..." Gabriel frowned as if he was trying to put numbers on it.

"You mean..." Charlie had had enough of the riddles that Gabriel liked to dangle in front of him. He only wanted the truth and now he was done playing around. He wouldn't fear him anymore because what was the point? It only made him appear fragile and vulnerable and Gabriel could play on that. No, Charlie was going to stand up to him and not make this easy for him.

"Yes, when I first met her," Gabriel gazed at Lauren who lay at his feet, "she was a hooker."

"That doesn't matter, she was a good person."

"Because she wanted to protect her son? You have no idea of all she did for me."

He and Lauren hadn't had time to discuss a lot, but even if it was true, it didn't matter. She'd tried to protect her son; she had given her life in order to get Charlie out. Nothing else mattered to him.

Gabriel stood up from the bed and walked over to the desk again, the knife still clutched in his hand. He leaned over, bringing his face only inches from Charlie's who didn't dare move.

"Let me tell you a secret," Gabriel whispered, his hot breath caressed his cheek. "Some people don't want to buy you for your brains."

The last bit of colour that had been visible in Charlie's face fled. He swallowed heavily; he couldn't handle this anymore.

"No matter what you do to me," Charlie whispered back as he refused to give into his emotions, "you will not lay one finger on Don or Andrew."

"You underestimate me, Charlie," Gabriel seemed honestly offended as he spoke, "what makes you say that I won't harm them. When you're gone, I'll find a new way to get to them, because be honest, Don will eventually stop looking for you. He'll assume you're dead and he'll stop protecting Andrew and then I'll make my move."

"You're wrong," Charlie said, needing to believe that Don would never stop looking for him. "Don'll never give up on finding me, not until he has my body in his hands," the acid taste of bile rose into his throat. "And if that happens, he will not stop looking for you."

Gabriel straightened his back as he smiled at Charlie.

"Have I ever told you that I admire you," he said, slowly walking around the desk, "if not, I do, but you also annoy the hell out of me."

Charlie didn't answer him as anger made his eyes flash.

"You're not afraid you might end up like she did?" Gabriel smirked, pointing his knife towards Lauren.

Charlie pressed his lips together.

"What's the matter; lost your voice?" Gabriel mocked him. "There is truly nothing you can do to stop me. I will find my son and I will do with him what I want and the longer it takes me to get to him, the more consequences this will have for your family."

"Screw you," Charlie spat out surprising himself. He didn't know where the words had came from. His fear and anger took over all rational thought.

"Oh, I won't be the one getting screwed."

Charlie's eyes widened and his breathing hitched as he stared into Gabriel's grinning face.

"Some are willing, very willing, to buy you. Having their own personal slave is apparently very popular these days," Gabriel laughed out loudly, "And having one so… eminent… can only add to the pleasure. But then again…" his grin disappeared, "that also means your disappearance won't go unnoticed. Your brother won't stop his quest to find you so unfortunately, things aren't going to work out that well."

Gabriel sighed deeply as if he was already regretting this.

Before Charlie realized what was happening, he felt Gabriel's fist hit his face. His vision swam and he fell to the floor. He had no idea what was happening to him. Why had Gabriel suddenly become violent? What was the meaning of this?

His nose hurt and he tasted blood in his mouth. Gabriel knelt down besides him and smiled again, making Charlie crawl back. Gabriel grabbed his leg and pulled it towards him. Charlie threw out his uninjured arm trying to find something to hold onto.

His mind screamed out at him as he realized what Gabriel's plan was when the knife was raised up in front of his eyes. Charlie's blood raced through his veins and his heart started beating rapidly. He kicked his legs as wildly as he could, kicking the knife out of Gabriel's hand. But Gabriel hit him in the face again and Charlie momentarily blacked out. It was enough for Gabriel to rub his hand through Charlie's hair before pulling it and making him cry out in pain.

His struggles increased; he wasn't just going to let Gabriel kill him. Not like he'd killed Lauren. And if, God forbid, it happened, he was certainly not going down without a fight!

He scrabbled up onto all fours and grabbed the knife before Gabriel got the chance. However, Charlie's legs got kicked out from under him. He quickly rolled over sending a stab of pain through his wrist. His head smacked against the corner of the desk as Gabriel furiously threw himself on him, trying to take back the knife. Charlie instinctively held out his arms trying to protect his head. Suddenly, Gabriel shuddered and his face twisted.

Warm blood flooded over Charlie's hand which was pressed against Gabriel's shirt. Gabriel's cold eyes were only inches from his own so he couldn't help but see with horrible clarity as the life drained out of them.

Charlie stopped breathing himself and stared at the ceiling, realizing that a dead man was lying on top of him. Tears ran over his cheeks when he finally found the courage to push him away, pulling the knife out of his chest. He needed to hold on to it as it made him feel just a little bit safer.

Charlie could swear that his eyes were still gazing at him so he looked away, only to see Lauren's body.

With shaking hands and legs, he crawled over to her, placing his bandaged hand on her wound in her chest, his fingers on her throat. Nothing. No pulse, no breathing, no movement. She was truly gone.

Charlie knew if he ever wanted to get out of here, that now was the time, but finding the strength in his legs to actually stand up was difficult.

He resolutely pushed the voice away that was screaming in his head. He'd killed someone! He may have been an evil bastard and he probably deserved it, but… Stop! This wasn't the time. He'd deal with it later.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered to her.

He took in a deep breath and pushed himself away from Lauren, away from this room. The door was closed, but not locked and Charlie didn't hesitate as he staggered through it. Suddenly, he heard voices yell out downstairs making him come to a halt, again frozen by fear.

**AN: Let me know what you think about this chapter.** **All reviews are welcome...**

**I'll try and post the next chapter as soon as possible!**


	13. Chapter 13

**AN:**** First of all, I wanted to thank you all for all the wonderful reviews that I got. It's so nice to know that people like your story and that they want to know what will happen next. So of course I hope this chapter will be liked as well!**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help!**

**Enjoy...**

**Chapter 13 – Burst of Noise **

Charlie slowly reached the stairs and descended them with hesitation. He was expecting Gabriel's men to overpower him any minute now, but nothing happened. The voices that had yelled out just minutes ago were now gone and the silence felt unnatural. But Charlie didn't really care if he got caught or not, all he could think of was the blood which covered nearly his whole body; blood that not only belonged to Gabriel, but to Lauren as well.

The shock had hit him when he had been descending the stairs. He had killed a man, he had taken someone else's life and now he was covered with his blood. Charlie could still see Gabriel's blank eyes even though he was no longer near him.

Something was going on. It was just too quiet when Charlie entered a great hall at the end of the stairs. He clutched the knife hard without realizing it as he let his gaze sweep the room, not really seeing it.

And then a burst of noise. Suddenly, a group of people, all dressed in black, surrounded him. Men in dark entered the room, bursting through the doors and pointing guns at him.

He was caught and Charlie didn't react, he didn't even move. He had no idea what Gabriel's men would do to him. He might die right now, but yet, his mind couldn't comprehend any of it. That one thought of having just killed a person was still clouding everything.

He heard shouting, he heard words, but nothing made sense. It was as if he was listening to a foreign language. He looked into the eyes of each of the men that surrounded him, but he couldn't see any emotion.

"Drop the knife or we'll shoot," one of the figures spoke.

Charlie looked at the person, confused and not understanding what the figure was talking about. He then lowered his gaze and saw that he was still holding on to the knife. It was clenched between his fingers, but his body refused to drop it. Charlie wasn't in control of his actions.

"Let me through!" another voice cried out.

Charlie slowly turned his gaze from one figure to the next, looking for the origin of that sound. It had appeared to be so familiar.

"Lower your guns, damn it," that voice yelled again, louder this time.

Charlie tried to place it, he tried to remember to whom that voice belonged, but he came up empty. The masked figures with the guns stepped away, making room for two other men that rushed towards him.

"Charlie?" the one with the familiar voice asked him carefully.

Charlie looked at the man who stood closest, the man who was speaking to him. He had short dark hair, nearly black, and kind eyes that only spoke of worry and fear. This man cared for him and Charlie couldn't understand any of it. Why would one of Gabriel's men care for him?

"Charlie, it's me. It's Don."

Charlie looked at him, but he couldn't understand him, he couldn't hear him. All sound had disappeared and Charlie suddenly feared that he had gone deaf. He closed his eyes and saw the blackness he desired so much. But it didn't bring him peace like he had expected. Voices appeared to sound louder. Cars that passed by the house suddenly made more noise. It was as if reality was pulling him back to where he was, forcing him to open his eyes again.

"Charlie?" Don asked him, placing his hand on his shoulder as his little brother seemed to struggle with himself, squeezing his eyes shut.

Charlie backed away from the sudden touch and stretched out his hand with the knife. Don pulled back his arm and raised his hands, showing him that he wasn't armed and that he didn't want to hurt Charlie. However, he was worried about the blood that covered him from almost head to toe. he need to know if Charlie was hurt beyond the obvious facial injuries and the bandaged wrist.

"They keep looking at me," Charlie whispered as he opened his eyes. He shuddered. The darkness had been filled with empty eyes gazing at him, Lauren and Gabriel's eyes. When he looked down at his clothes, he saw the blood and couldn't help but gag.

Don slowly walked up closer to him, not wanting to scare him and gently placed his hand on his back. Charlie turned his gaze to him, confused and hurt. Don wanted to ask him who he had meant by 'they', but it was obvious that would only scare him even more.

"Charlie, it's all over. Gabriel won't hurt you anymore, I swear. Look into my eyes,' Don said in a soft voice, throwing Charlie a faint smile, trying to reassure him that he was speaking the truth. He then looked over to some men of the SWAT-team, ordering them to go take a look upstairs and search for any sign of Gabriel as he needed to be sure that Charlie was indeed safe.

Charlie hesitated for a moment, but did as Don asked and looked into his eyes. He now recognized them and he realized that he was still clutching the knife in his hand. Disgusted, he dropped it and pulled his hurt hand up to his chest, forcing back the tears.

"Don?" Charlie asked, still needing reassurance that he was really his big brother. He started breathing more quickly and threw his arms around him. Don followed his example and pressed his Charlie close up against his chest not caring about the blood covering him.

"I couldn't save her," Charlie softly said, "I waited for you, but now it's too late."

Don gently rubbed his hand through Charlie's hair and hushed him. His other hand was carefully ghosting over his body searching for cuts that were still bleeding.

"I'm here now," he whispered, having to fight the urge to ask him about who he was talking about, "and I'm not going anywhere. You're hurt," Don said, more a statement than a question while he forced Charlie to look him in the eyes, "tell me where."

Charlie just glared at him and tried to remember, but he didn't feel any pain for the moment. All he could think of was Gabriel.

"I...I don't know," he finally said, looking confused as he tried to remember everything that had happened to him. "Where's Andrew?" he then asked, feeling so stupid that he could have forgotten about him. Last time he'd seen him, he had been in the closet; he'd been so scared. Where was he now? Was he hurt too?

Don looked at his brother and smiled as he realized that Charlie was thinking about that little boy while he himself had obviously been hurt.

"He's home," he answered quickly, not wanting to concern Charlie, "he's safe, you kept him safe. What happened to you, Charlie?"

He wanted to answer Don's question, but he realized that thinking about the fight with Gabriel was still too much to handle right now. He felt the tears well up in his eyes and he shook his head as he tried to not think about it. He didn't want his head to explode with the images. He just wanted to forget.

"Can we get out of here?" He asked as he stared at all the men that were still surrounding him. Only now he realized they were mostly members of a SWAT-team. Two other men who were obviously agents of some kind stood about seven feet away from them and Colby was standing right behind Don. He closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around his brother again needing to feel that he wasn't alone anymore.

"It's okay," Don reassured him as he felt the distress running through Charlie's body, "I'm here."

Slowly and supporting Charlie under his shoulders, Don guided him out of the house. He nearly lost his balance a few times, but Colby quickly ran over to him and helped him. Charlie had trouble supporting his own weight.

Moving fast had made his vision go dark again and Charlie held on tighter to Don. With fear, he realized that Gabriel might have caused a concussion.

As they exited the house, Charlie turned his head and looked at the luxurious dwelling one last time, hoping that he would never see it again. He started to chuckle even though he had no idea why and Don and Colby gazed at him, worried again.

Charlie's laugh wasn't his normal laugh, Don knew that, and he also recognized it. He had heard it only a few times in his life and he was immediately alarmed. He gave Colby a sign to stop walking and turned to face Charlie head on.

"Buddy?"

Charlie's laugh changed and loud sobs escaped his mouth. He was now laughing and crying at the same time and Don didn't know what to do, he didn't know how to handle this. Last time this had happened, Alan had dealt with Charlie, comforting him in his distress which had been his mother's death.

"It's okay, you're safe, no one is going to hurt you," Don soothed him, placing his hand on his cheek before pulling him up into a warm embrace. Don sincerely hoped that he could make it true. While he'd wanted his brother to live more in the real world, he certainly hadn't wanted it to be such a brutal lesson.

This made Charlie cry harder and he started to shake while Don tried to keep him steady, but it was nearly impossible.

"Where are the paramedics?" Don asked Colby, his voice soft, as he didn't want to alarm Charlie or upset him even more.

"I'll get them!" Colby answered and he ran to get help.

"Charlie, everything'll be okay." Don whispered over and over again to his brother, still feeling overwhelmed and wanting to know the truth. He needed to know what had happened to him, but he knew Charlie wasn't ready to talk. And then Charlie gazed into his eyes, a broken look filling his face.

"I killed him, Don," Charlie whispered, completely upset and devastated, "I killed a man!"

And Don knew that perhaps, this lesson was going to extract more from his brother than either was willing to give.

**AN: Let me know what you think about it and if you liked it or not. I promise to post the next chapter as soon as possible!  
**


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help you gave me with this chapter.**

**Enjoy the chapter...**

**Chapter 14 – The Ride to the Hospital**

Charlie quickly became nearly unresponsive to outside stimulation as soon as he realised that he was safe now; his brother was here. He didn't look at Don when he talked, he didn't react to anything that happened around him; he seemed to be in a vacuum.

As the medics guided him into the ambulance, Don noticed Charlie's unwillingness to let go of his arm. His fingers were wound tightly around his left wrist.

"It's okay, Charlie," Don calmly said, trying to soothe him, "I'm not going anywhere." Charlie's only response was a heavy swallow. Don watched how the medics started to work on Charlie's head wound and wrist.

Charlie suddenly tensed every muscle in his body, his eyes moving rapidly from the left to the right as if he was trying to see what was happening. Seeing how Charlie was reacting to Colby's approach, Don held up his hand for the agent to stop short of them.

Colby was confused, but one look at the young professor made him understand what was going on.

"Charlie," Don, in saying his brother's name was asking a million questions. He needed to know if he felt safe, or at least safer. He needed to know how bad he was hurting. He needed to know what had happened. But Charlie remained silent, only letting his body relax slightly. He he still looked awfully pale, but at least the tremors were subsiding.

"What is it, Colby?" Don asked, feeling how blood was slowly returning into his arm. Charlie had released his grip, but was still holding on. Charlie needed to rest and recover from what had happened. However, as he knew from his own experiences, he'd also benefit from the support of his family and friends. He vowed to be there for him.

"We found Gabriel Manners and an unidentified woman. They're both dead," Colby answered standing next to them and keeping his voice low as he wanted to make sure Charlie didn't hear any of this.

"So it looks like he did kill Gabriel?" Don softly asked, needing to hear conformation. (Without forensic evidence or more investigation, I think that Don would be a bit more circumspect. His training would have taught him not to make definite statements without proof.)

"Yes," Colby sighed. He knew how difficult it was to deal with killing a man and he was an agent. Charlie was a math professor and would have no idea how to handle this. "But we'll have to wait for tests to show us who killed the woman. For the moment, nothing's pointing to Charlie."

"Charlie couldn't have killed her," Don said, throwing a quick glance at his brother, "he said he couldn't save her."

He remembered so vividly how broken Charlie had appeared when he'd said those words just after he'd found him. Charlie had said that he had waited for him, but that it was too late. Don swallowed heavily as he had a strong suspicion about who the woman could be.

"I think we're all thinking the same, Don," Colby then said, addressing the subject that he wanted to get to since he'd first came to talk to his boss, "just looking at her..."

"It's Lauren," Don sighed, more a statement than a question, "what do you mean, 'just looking at her'?"

Colby only then remembered that Don hadn't seen her yet or the room in which Charlie had probably been held in.

"There are some similarities between her and Andrew."

Don's attention was drawn to Charlie again as the two medics were preparing to leave for the hospital.

"Sir," the oldest looking medic said, "we need to leave."

Don only nodded before turning his attention back to Colby.

"You can handle this, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, Don," Colby said without hesitation, "you take care of Charlie."

The doors of the ambulance closed and Don focused entirely on his brother. His presence and the ministrations of the paramedics seemed to have gone a long way to calming him down, but Don was still worried. Even though a lot of the blood covering Charlie wasn't his, he could still see the bruises on his face and the way he hunched over. As the ambulance moved, he brushed a curl off his brother's forehead and looked into his eyes. His face was relaxing, as the adrenaline that had kept him going up till now bled out of his system. Slowly his eyes closed and his hand slid away from Don's arm. Don grabbed at it needing the contact himself.

As Charlie gratefully gave in to his body's needs, he heard his brother's voice.

"You get some sleep now, buddy. I'm here."

* * *

Arriving at the hospital, Don was asked to wait in a waiting room after telling the ER nurse about the situation and all he knew about Charlie's injuries and medical history. He had tried to get inside the examination room with Charlie, but a nurse had made him come to a halt.

"I'm sorry, Sir," she had said, an apologetic look in her eyes, "you'll have to wait out here."

"But that's my brother," Don had protested.

"We'll take good care of him," the nurse reassured him. "Go over to the desk there and fill out the admittance forms. That'll help."

Don didn't know why he hadn't protested more, why he had simply listened to her and was now sitting on a chair instead of being with Charlie. Only when he heard his name being called out by a familiar voice was he distracted from his thoughts.

He glanced around the room searching for the face to go with the voice.

"Dad," Don said, confused, as he didn't know how his Dad had known to come here and feeling guilty that he hadn't thought about him before.

"David called," Alan said, straightening his back as if he was trying to find Charlie, "where is he?"

"The doctor's with him," Don answered, "where's Andrew?"

"He's with Sara and Megan."

Don could see how much his father disliked that thought. Not that Sara and Megan weren't capable of taking care of him, Alan just liked it more when he was around, certainly now that Andrew was asking for Charlie all the time.

"I'm sure he's in good hands, then," Don managed to smile.

A door opened and Don got a glance of Charlie lying on a gurney, his arm pierced with an IV while he seemed to have gained some kind of colour.

A doctor blocked his view as he came through the door. "Anyone for Charles Eppes?"

Both don and Alan rushed over to him introducing themselves.

"Hello," his voice was strangely cheery, "my name is Doctor Slingsby. I'm Mr Eppes' attending physician. He's stable right now. He needed fluids and his wrist is broken. We managed to repair it with a simple cast. There's a possibility he'll have a few problems with it as the bones had been twisted out of place as well as being crushed. Physical therapy will put that right though. We've x-rayed his ribs and fortunately, none are broken, but two of them are cracked. He'll be sore for a few weeks but they don't need to be strapped. His nose isn't broken, only bruised and he has a light concussion so he'll have to stay in bed for a few days. I want to keep him overnight for observation, but if everything goes well, he should be able to go home by the end of tomorrow. We've got him on a saline drip and an IV painkiller, but he'll be off those by the morning."

Don could only thankfully smile at the doctor.

"Thank you," Alan said, "so we can go in and see him?"

"Yes," the doctor hesitated while his glance shifted towards Don, "but he needs rest."

Don didn't understand why he was telling him this.

"I understand that you're an FBI agent," Slingsby explained. "As I understand, he underwent an extremely traumatic experience. It could be that your brother won't remember all of the events that transpired. I suggest you don't push him into remembering. Professor Eppes needs rest, physically and mentally. One of the nurses will tell you which room he'll be in."

Don watched how the doctor walked away, needing to be with another patient. He and Alan stood in the hallway for another moment, needing to take in a breath and to prepare themselves to talk to Charlie.

------------------------------

It was Don who walked in to Charlie's room first, Alan following him only a few steps behind. He had been brought to his permanent room soon after Slingsby had talked to Don and Alan. When the door was closed, the only sound that could be heard was their breathing. Charlie was lying in the bed with his head turned towards the window and his arm in its blue cast resting on his stomach.

"Charlie?" Alan softly asked his son, standing next to him and taking his hand into his own. His eyes took in the bruises, the swollen nose, the black eye and the split lip. Thank God he'd been told that he'd be all right because his face looked terrible. "Can you hear me?"

There came no response, not that Don had expected any. Charlie was obviously asleep to get some rest, which was probably for the best.

Don walked to his brother's other side and laid a hand on his arm above the cast.

"I'm glad to have you back," Don whispered softly so that Alan didn't hear him. He didn't want his father knowing how frightened he'd been for Charlie.

**AN: I hope this new chapter was liked. I know you had to wait a while for it and I can't tell you when the new chapter is going to be posted. All that I can tell you is that I hope it will be soon as I am going to try and write it this week.**

**But until then, you can let me know what you think of this chapter!**


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: I know, I am horrible for making you all wait for so long before I posted another chapter, but finally, here it is. I hope it is liked and I hope you're all exited to see Andrew and Charlie back together again, but that will have to wait until the next chapter.**

**Thanks for sticking with this story!**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help. I wouldn't know what to do without you guys!**

**Chapter 15 – Waking up in the Hospital**

The first thing Charlie became aware of was the bright light in the room he was in. When turning his head towards the window, he realized the light didn't come from the ceiling as he'd assumed; it came from the sun. Even through the window, Charlie could feel its warmth. Remembering now what had happened to him, he sat up in his bed and looked around his hospital room. He was alone and somehow he felt relieved. This gave him the opportunity to figure out his thoughts and feelings.

While still sitting up, he closed his eyes. Flashes of Gabriel and what he'd done came to him and soon, thoughts of Lauren took over. He'd watched Gabriel kill her; he'd watched the pain on her face while he'd done nothing. It'd all happened so fast and Charlie hadn't even called out to warn her. Why hadn't he seen it coming?

Opening his eyes again, he took in a deep breath as a way to calm his body down. His hands had started trembling and his breathing had quickened. Suddenly, the image of Andrew flooded his mind. That boy was now an orphan and Charlie didn't even know whether that was a good or a bad thing. He'd lost his mother who loved him and who'd tried to protect him. And when Andrew was older, there was a good chance that he wouldn't even remember her. That saddened him. Charlie had lost his own mother, but that was after he'd had a chance to know her and feel the love she'd had for him. Somehow he wanted to try and make things better for Andrew; try and take away some of the pain he knew that he'd encounter later.

While thinking these heavy thoughts, the door of the room opened slowly and Don's head popped around it.

"Oh, hey, buddy," he smiled entering, no longer trying to make no noise, "how're you feeling?"

Charlie let himself fall back onto his pillow, not taking his eyes away from his brother. He held a large cup of coffee in his hand and Charlie wondered how long he'd been here in the hospital. Was it hours or days already?

"Not bad," Charlie didn't lie, knowing that Don would see right through it. "My hand hurts." Only then did Charlie notice the weight on his left arm and the prick of an IV in the back of his other hand. His wrist was in a cast and the memories of what Gabriel had done to it flooded his mind. Resolutely, he pushed them away along with the unwelcome memories of what he'd done to Gabriel in turn. For the moment he could relax in the knowledge that his brother was here and he was out of danger.

"The doctor says it'll heal completely so don't worry about it," Don said as he put down his cup of coffee on the small table next to the chair he was sitting on.

"Where's Andrew?" Charlie felt the need to know right away; he needed to know that he was safe and that Lauren's boy was still being looked after.

"He's with dad at the house," Don seemed to hesitate for a moment before going on, "he refused to eat and sleep with Sara, but he's alright." An ironic tint filled his eyes as if he wasn't surprised that Andrew had been Charlie's first thought.

"Good," Charlie let out a sigh, enjoying the feeling of a heavy weight falling from his heart. "When can I go home?"

"Charlie, you went through a lot, you need to rest," Don was acting like the big brother he always was, only this time, Charlie wasn't going to listen to him. He didn't want to rest; he didn't want to stay in this hospital unnecessarily because he felt fine.

"I can rest at home," he said, hoping that Don would believe that.

"What, you gonna take the IV with you? Don wasn't going to give up either on winning this, "Look, it's understandable that you're shook up about this. The implications this will have on your emotions and..."

"My emotions are just fine," Charlie sneered. He realized too late how that had come out seeing how Don was giving him the "you-see" look. Charlie sighed and glanced away.

"And you still need to give a statement as well and trust me, that can be hard as well. You need to tell us everything; every little detail and trust me when I tell you that it can seem as if you're reliving the whole thing and that ain't pleasant."

"I can handle this," Charlie gazed Don straight in the eyes again, "I have to be able to handle this."

"Why?" Don was honestly surprised to hear Charlie say those words.

"Because if I can't, how is Andrew ever going to be able to even comprehend this?"

"Oh, Charlie..."

"Does he know already?"

"We're waiting on DNA-tests to confirm that it is in fact her, but evidence is pointing in that direction. If you confirm that's what she said to you as well, then I think we'll be able to tell him soon." Don sighed sadly running his fingers through his hair. He was trying to understand how Andrew would react; he was only a little boy after all.

"I'd like to be the one to tell him." Charlie knew that this burden fell on his shoulders; that somehow it was his responsibility.

"Maybe it's better if someone else took that..."

"Please, Don," Charlie interrupted him, unconsciously copying his brother by running his IV'd hand through his mussed curls, "I need to be the person to tell him."

Don didn't answer for a few seconds, trying to read Charlie, as he looked straight into his eyes. He wished his little brother would never have to experience something like this. He'd tried to protect him against these kinds of situation for his whole life while still trying to instil in him that life was made up of more things than math. He would give anything to be in Charlie's place, to be the one in pain even though Charlie would never admit that to him.

"If that's what you think's best," Don said, understanding that Charlie felt like he should be the one to tell him as he had been there to see it happen.

"Then when can I go home and tell him?" Charlie wanted to leave this hospital as soon as possible.

"I'll go ask the doctor," Don said, standing up from his chair.

"Thank you, Don," Charlie quickly said before his brother left the room. Don came to a halt just before the door and turned his head to face him.

"Just don't..." he searched for the right words for a moment, "don't go acting all brave and stuff because that won't help any of us." Don knew that Charlie needed to understand that he had to face what was happening right now as well as what was going on inside his head. He knew that his brother's brain didn't process things in the same manner as 'mere mortals' and although he could only comprehend a fraction of went on under those curls Don also knew that those processes left him fragile in the emotion stakes.

"I'll try." Charlie couldn't say anything more than that. Don left the room and Charlie couldn't help but stare at the place his big brother had just been. It wasn't long before Don came back, a doctor following him.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Richards, your attending physician. How are you feeling?" the doctor took out a small flashlight and shone it into Charlie's eyes.

"I feel fine," Charlie answered. "A little sore, but not bad considering."

"Well, you've been here twenty four hours and you haven't developed any complications. I see no reason for you not to be able to go home. That is if you promise to rest and to take it easy. That wrist needs rest as well so no heavy lifting or using it at all for the next couple of days." The doctor looked into Charlie's eyes as if he could read in there if what Charlie was going to say next was a lie or not. "Keep it in a sling for now and I'll give you a prescription for some painkillers. Your face may not be hurting too much now, but I think you'll find there'll be moments you'll be grateful for them."

"Thanks for the advice, Doctor," Charlie said, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"And if necessary, I'll hide your chalk," threatened Don with a smile in voice.

The doctor, not having an idea of what Don was talking about, continued, "And I want to see you next week for a check-up. Should you have any complaints, you come back to the hospital immediately." Again, he gazed into Charlie's eyes, who just nodded.

"Thanks, Doc," Don said, shaking his hand before he left the room, "Dad'll be so relieved to have you back home. If it hadn't been for Andrew, he wouldn't have left your bedside."

"I can imagine," for the first time since he'd woken up, Charlie fully smiled although it pulled on his split lip and bruises. The thought of going home outweighed any physical discomfort. He hadn't been here very long, and most of the time he'd spent being unconscious, but he'd never liked hospitals. Not that he spent a lot of time in them. It was just he always linked with the thought of Don being in them as he was the agent in the family; the man who got into a line of fire for a living.

After having taken care of the paperwork, getting rid of that IV, taken a shower and changed into the clothes his brother had brought him, Charlie was ready to go home. As he was leaving the room, Don behind him, he watched how his father came out of the elevator, a small boy in his arms. A boy that Charlie, in the darkest moments at Gabriel's house, had thought never to see again.

He suddenly didn't know what to say to him or how even to talk to him. Before, it had come so naturally as he'd felt a bond with Andrew without even having to try and make one. But now, with him only yards away, he suddenly didn't even know what he should say to him as he knew what would come next, heartbreaking news. Charlie didn't want to cause him any more pain. Turning around, he saw Don watching his every move, his eyes suspicious as if this was conformation that Charlie wasn't doing so alright after all.

"Just breathe," Don encouraged him, "Andrew's been waiting for you a long time, everything'll be alright."

Charlie swallowed heavily and slowly turned to face his father and Andrew again

**AN: I will try and update the next chapter soon, but until then...let me know what you thought about this one!**


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: I know it has been some time again since I posted a new chapter, but so many things are happening. Translation: school is giving me a hard time because I can't write as much anymore. **

**I hope this chapter will be liked and I hope many have looked forward to this, but Andrew and Charlie are reunited! **

**Anyways...enjoy!**

**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help again. You guys are fantastic because I wouldn't know what to do without you two!**

**Chapter 16 – Home and Safe**

When Andrew caught sight of Charlie, he tried to escape from Alan's arms. Knowing nothing could happen here to the little kid, as Charlie and Don were right there, Alan put him down on the floor and watched him run over to his youngest son. He had seen that Charlie wasn't sure how to react in this situation, but he had confidence that everything would turn out just fine. Supressing the urge to run over to his son himself, wanting to ask him so many questions to know if he was alright, Alan slowed down his walk, wanting to give Charlie some space with Andrew first.

"Hey, Andrew," Charlie smiled, kneeling down when Andrew had reached him. He had forgotten how easy it was for him to talk to this toddler and how this kid had trusted him rather fast while he'd needed more time to trust Don and the others.

"You okay again?" Andrew asked in a high childish voice, stretching out his arms for Charlie to pick him up. "Don said you got hurt."

Charlie, who was holding awkwardly Andrew in his arms because of his broken wrist, turned to look at his brother.

"He was very worried," Don said, waving to the kid in greeting. Andrew waved back before placing his arms tightly around Charlie's neck and laying his head on his shoulder. Charlie noticed that even though he had only known Andrew for a short time, he could already see some changes in the young child; but change isn't always a bad thing, Charlie told himself.

"I missed you," Charlie told Andrew, rubbing his hurt hand carefully through Andrew's curls.

"Are you coming home now?" Andrew asked without lifting his head to look at him.

"Yes," Charlie smiled, "I'm not going to leave you again." Looking up from the small child in his arms, Charlie noticed that his father had joined them. Looking at his him, Charlie saw the wetness in his eyes.

"I was so worried about you," Alan said, trying to keep his voice even, "glad to see you up and running again."

"Not too sure that 'running's' the right word but I'm glad to see you too, dad," Charlie said wryly. As he supported Andrew's weight with his uninjured arm, he placed his other one around his father's neck, quickly pulling him into an embrace.

"Andrew missed you a lot," Alan said as he took a step back again, "he was so exited when I told him he could see you again."

"Hey, buddy," Charlie said, calling for Andrew's attention.

"Uhu?" Andrew gazed up, his little head only coming off a few inches from his shoulder as he looked Charlie in the eyes.

"Let's go home, shall we?" Charlie smiled and Andrew immediately smiled along with him.

Charlie didn't know why he'd felt so nervous when he'd seen Andrew for the first time again here. Like he'd told himself when trying to garner up some courage, talking to this boy felt like second nature.

When they walked out of the hospital that late afternoon, Charlie could feel Andrew becoming heavier just like when he'd first met him. He was sure that he'd fallen asleep in his arms again.

"Is he sleeping?"

Don laughed softly after he'd peeked at Andrew's eyes, which were shut.

"Yeah," Don whispered, not wanting to wake him up, "he never did fall asleep in anybody's arms again. He must feel really safe with you."

Charlie saw Don's black SUV parked a few yards away and he hoped that he'd be able to make it. He still wasn't up to full strength and with one arm in a cast supporting Andrew's full weight was getting more and more difficult. But the fact that he would soon need to put this little kid down wasn't a pleasant thought however. Having Andrew in his arms didn't only give the boy a safe feeling, Charlie somehow felt safer by it as well just because he knew that Andrew was with him.

"When are you going to tell him?" Don suddenly asked. He didn't even need to mention what he was talking about as Charlie could read in his eyes what subject he was referring to.

Charlie suddenly realised that that had been the reason he'd been so nervous about seeing the kid again. He needed to tell him about his mother.

"At home, when he wakes up," Charlie said, the determination could be heard in his voice. They'd reached the car and with some difficulty, they all got in. Charlie quickly noticed there was a kid's seat now installed and with Alan's help, he had placed Andrew in it. Don was already in the driver's seat when Alan and Charlie were about to get in as well.

"So it's true?" Alan asked, knowing Andrew couldn't hear them should he wake up as he was inside of the car and they were still outside with the doors closed.

"That his mother died?" Charlie asked, not really knowing what his father was talking about.

"Yes."

"Yeah," Charlie sighed, walking over to the other side of the car so he could get in as well, "I'm going to tell him tonight."

"Maybe that's not a good idea, Charlie," Alan said. "Maybe you should let someone else tell him. I don't want your relationship with Andrew to be ruined because he might associate you with his mother's death or because he wouldn't feel safe with you anymore."

Charlie didn't answer. The idea Alan had just told him about Andrew not trusting him anymore scared him. What if Andrew didn't want to see him again after this? What if he started to dislike him because he hadn't saved his mother and yet he was still here.

"Why do you want to tell him?" Alan now asked, concern filling his voice. Seeing that strong gaze in his father's eyes, Charlie realised that he'd prepared himself for this conversation with him which meant that he already knew about him telling Andrew.

"Did Don talk to you?" Charlie asked.

"Yes," Alan said, not wanting to lie to his son, "he's worried about you. We all are and we just want what is best for both you and Andrew."

"It must be me to tell him because..." Charlie took a moment to figure out the answer himself, "because if something had happened to mom, I would have liked to have heard the news from someone that I trusted because otherwise, I wouldn't even believe it."

"But Andrew's only a child..."

"Please, dad, couldn't you just support me in this decision?" Charlie asked, not feeling in the mood for a discussion about it right now. Alan thought for a few moments and then nodded.

"Okay," he said, "but you're not doing it alone. Don and I will be close by. And then we're going to have a talk about his future."

"Thanks, dad," Charlie smiled faintly even though there wasn't actually anything to smile about. He had no idea what the future held for Andrew, but he knew that whatever happened, he wanted to be part of that future.

The drive home went smoothly and Andrew didn't wake up which was good. He hadn't really slept well the last few days. Back home, Don took Andrew out of the seat, carrying him gently and slowly towards Charlie's front door. Charlie had wanted to get him, but it was impossible for him to get him out of the seat with only one hand.

Don took Andrew upstairs and Charlie could only follow. He wasn't sure what Don was up to, but when he got to his own bedroom which Don had already entered, he realised this was still the place where Andrew slept; in his own bed.

Careful not to wake him up, Don laid Andrew down and covered him with a light sheet as it was still warm in the room. Andrew only turned to his side and sighed deeply before fully falling asleep again. He hadn't opened his eyes, but he had sensed all the movement.

"He's safe, Charlie," Don whispered, seeing how his brother was staring at the boy.

"I know," Charlie smiled, sitting down on the couch next to the bed, "I just don't want to leave him again."

"Alright," Don simply said, "dad and I'll be downstairs so if you need anything."

"Thank you." Charlie quickly glanced at Don, but he felt like his gaze needed to be focused on Andrew instead. Looking at him, noticing every small detail in his features, Charlie saw how alike his mother he was. They both had thin lips and a little nose and they were both very pale skinned. Even their curls were similar. Hearing Don leaving the room, Charlie kept watching Andrew. All through his terrible captivity he'd hoped that he would see him again, not knowing if he would ever be able to escape from Gabriel. And now here he was and he was going to enjoy every moment he could spent with Andrew.

Coming downstairs, Don saw that Alan was waiting for him in the living room. He sat on the couch, his gaze fixed upon the stairs and once Don came down, he jumped up and walked over to him.

"How're they doing?" asked Alan.

"Andrew's still sleeping and Charlie doesn't want to leave him alone," Don answered.

"Do you think Charlie will be all right? He seemed..." Alan searched for the right word, but he couldn't think of it. Different wasn't exactly what he meant, but Don seemed to understand what he was talking about.

"He went through a lot, dad," Don said, walking around his father and sitting down on the couch where only seconds ago his father had been sitting. "He needs time. We all need time because there's still a long road ahead. Let's just be happy that he's already home."

Alan looked his oldest son straight in the eyes, seeing that he meant every word of it. A smile, starting from Don's lips, reached his eyes, making them glitter with joy.

"What?" Alan asked, not understanding the sudden happiness.

"He's home, dad," Don explained himself, "Charlie's upstairs, he's safe and so is Andrew. What more should we want?"

Upstairs, Charlie noticed the small movements Andrew made. He started breathing deeper and he began to rub his hand over his nose. Charlie wondered if it was one of those signs Andrew would always show when he was about to wake up. He realised that even though he felt an intense bond with this kid, that he hardly knew him and so Charlie promised himself to change that fact.

Andrew's eyes fluttered open and without hesitating, he sat up.

"Charlie?" He seemed a little panicked and so Charlie stood up from his couch and quickly walked over to him, sitting down next to him and stroking some hair out of his eyes.

"I'm here," Charlie comforted him, "Don't you worry, I'm not going anywhere."

When Andrew was sure that Charlie was truly there and that he wasn't dreaming still, he let himself fall against Charlie's side while all Charlie could do was watch him. Now that they were alone, Charlie knew it was time for him to tell Andrew to news.

"Andrew?" Charlie asked, sliding a short way from Andrew so that he could see his little face, "There is something that I need to tell you."


	17. Chapter 17

**AN: I know, there is no excuse for me posting this chapter so late! It has been more than a month and I promise you that I will post the next chapter as soon as possible. **

**I hope you guys are still curious to see what will happen to Charlie and Andrew, so read if you are eager to find out...**

**Enjoy!**

_**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help!**_

**Chapter 17 – The Truth**

"Andrew?" Charlie asked, sliding away a little from him so that he could see his little face, "there's something that I need to say to you."

Andrew nodded his little head, making his curls bounce up and down. He appeared so much younger than the last time he had seen him and for a moment, Charlie considered not telling him the hateful news. Andrew seemed to be doing well lately; at least, that's was Don told him. And now that he had just taken a nap, his face was all lit up and his eyes were shining.

As he gazed at Charlie, waiting for him to say something else, he even looked happy. Swallowing heavily, Charlie knew that Andrew needed to know the truth about what had happened. He could only hope the little boy wouldn't hate him for it.

"I met your mom, Andrew," Charlie watched Andrew start smiling, "she loved you very much and she told me how brave you are."

"She did? I am. I'm a brave boy!" Andrew grinned at him and puffed out his little chest. Charlie could see that he was taking it as a game. Smiling faintly himself, he tried to convince Andrew of the seriousness of what he was saying.

"But something happened to her and now she can't come back to you." Andrew frowned. He couldn't understand Charlie's words and his eyes became wary. Charlie knew that this was hard for Andrew to comprehend.

"She said she'd come back," Andrew said angrily. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and glared at Charlie.

"She wanted to," Charlie whispered, not believing that telling him this could be so difficult, "trust me, Andrew, she wanted to come back to you. She was going to come here and take care of you. She loved you." Charlie hated seeing Andrew this sad and he hated feeling so helpless as there was nothing he could do about it.

"I'm so sorry, Andrew, she's dead," Charlie said, his voice soft. "She did everything that she could to keep you safe. Andrew, she loved you. But you know, she'll always be with you. She's in heaven and she'll be watching you always." He knew that it was cold comfort and he had no idea of Lauren's spiritual beliefs, but he was willing to talk about angels, Father Christmas, elves and the tooth fairy if it could help Andrew get through this difficult moment.

The boy still didn't say anything and Charlie didn't know what else to say.

"I want my mommy," Andrew cried, his voice loud while tears rolled down his cheeks.

Charlie gently stroked the boy's hair, hoping that this movement calmed him. To his surprise, Andrew leaned in against his chest, he flung his arms around Charlie's neck and pressed his face into his shoulder. Charlie knew he had to be careful. The last time that Andrew had been in this much distress, he had scratched open his own face. Charlie held him closely, still caressing his hair, hoping he would understand that he wouldn't leave him also.

"I know you want her, Andy, and I wish more than anything that I could bring her back for you, but I cant'" Charlie tried comforting him. "But I'll also make you a promise. I will never leave you, I will never let anything bad happen to you again because that is what your mommy wanted."

He felt Andrew nod his head, but that didn't stop his heartrending sobs. Charlie sighed and glanced up, suddenly spotting the figure in his doorway. Don stood there a suspicious watery glint in his eyes. He said nothing, but his face showed Charlie that he would support him in whatever he decided to do. Charlie felt the weight on his shoulders lighten slightly as he understood that his family was there for him.

"Are you hungry?" Charlie asked the boy, not letting him go and waiting for him to make the first move.

Andrew made a last gulping sigh and moved away from Charlie. His face was red and blotchy, but he gave a slight nod while rubbing his eyes with his sleeve.

"Okay," Charlie smiled, "we'll get something downstairs. But first of all, let's get you cleaned up." Awkwardly, he pulled out a handkerchief out of his jacket pocket and wiped Andrew's nose. "Blow," he asked, and dutifully the little boy blew his nose hard.

Don stood there marvelling that Charlie seemed to know instinctively what Andrew needed. He was certain that his genius brother had had little opportunity to interact with young children while travelling the world meeting other academics.

Andrew crawled off the bed and saw Don standing there. He ran over to him and grabbed his hand.

"Hey, buddy," Don smiled as he picked Andrew up in his arms, "what do you want to eat? Alan's making a delicious bowl with all kind of fruit in it."

Andrew's smile was timid and Charlie knew that he would soon start having questions. Charlie sighed, but Don didn't hear him.

"With apples?" Andrew asked, his voice high. Don nodded.

"Of course, we would never forget the apples." Don turned around and walked out of the room until he noticed that Charlie wasn't following him.

"Are you coming?" Andrew asked.

"He'll come in a moment," Don said, nodding his head in the mean time, "he needs to do something first." For a moment the two brothers looked at each other and a wealth of understanding passed between them.

Andrew nodded, not understanding, but knowing that Charlie would soon be with him. Don put Andrew down and felt his little hand steal into his. Together, they walked towards the stairs.

Charlie's heart felt heavy. Why couldn't he be stronger? Why couldn't he hide his emotions like Don could? He felt like screaming his lungs out. He walked over the door and carefully closed it. He needed some time alone.

As he let himself fall down on the couch again, he felt a tear roll down his cheek. He'd just told Andrew that his mother wasn't coming back to him, but he hadn't found it within himself to tell him that it was partly his fault that Lauren was now dead. She'd risked everything to get him out and to take care of his wounds but when Gabriel had killer her, he had simply stood there, too shocked to even move.

A soft knock could be heard and Charlie quickly stroked away the tears that were still rolling down his cheeks. He took and in a deep breath and talked with as much power as he could find in himself.

"Come in," he said.

Alan was the one that appeared, concern filling every inch of his face.

"Hey, dad," Charlie smiled, but he knew it wasn't a convincing one.

"Are you alright?" Alan asked.

"Yeah," Charlie answered and then his face turned serious again. What was the point in lying? "No," he sighed, "I don't know, dad."

"If you need to talk to someone," Alan took a step closer to his son, "I will always be here for you, you know that, right?"

"Of course," Charlie was now speaking the truth. He knew that his dad would always be there for his sons.

"Good," Alan now smiled, feeling relieved that Charlie understood him, "I'll go now. I just wanted to see if you were OK"

"Dad?" Charlie quickly asked. Alan turned around and waited on Charlie to say something more.

"When I was away, what happened here?" Charlie couldn't imagine Don not losing his mind while he was away somewhere where he couldn't follow him or not knowing what was happening to him.

Alan sighed and rubbed his hand across his forehead as if he was trying to decide if he should tell the truth or not.

"Don wouldn't stop until he'd found you, nobody would," Alan eventually said, "and I didn't know what to do with myself and Andrew missed you very much."

Charlie only nodded, feeling guilty. Even though he'd had no choice in the matter, he'd left his entire family behind, leaving them to wonder what could have happened to him.

"There's something else, Charlie," Alan sat down beside his son and Charlie knew that this couldn't be good news, "they've found a foster family for Andrew. I met the foster mother and she's really nice and Andrew seems to like her as well."

Charlie glanced down. He'd known this would happen. He knew that there was a day in the future when Andrew would no longer be living here anymore, but he hadn't expected it to be this soon. And he hadn't expected that the knowledge would be so painful.

"That is...euhm," Charlie searched for the right words, "good, I guess? If Andrew likes her then I'm sure everything will be alright."

"With you gone missing and with there being evidence that it had something to do with Andrew, things went much more quickly than normal," Alan explained.

Charlie didn't say anything, his eyes studying the floor.

"You should enjoy spending time with Andrew as much as possible," Alan said once he knew Charlie wasn't going to speak, "he's downstairs right now and he asked for you already. Son, he may be leaving us soon, but he'll always be here in our hearts. Don't miss out on the time you have with him. Life's too short to miss the good things going on."

Charlie looked up and glared into his father's eyes. It seemed so simple to do and yet, his heart raced when thinking about seeing Andrew. Charlie knew that he would start feeling guilty again and with good cause. He wanted to be with Andrew, but he'd been the reason why Andrew was now an orphan.

As Alan stood up, so did Charlie. Together they descended the stairs and entered the kitchen. As Charlie had expected, he immediately felt guilty. But slowly a warm feeling heated up the cold lump in his chest.

As he watched Don give Andrew a glass of orange juice, Charlie realised that he liked seeing this. No matter what happened and no matter what thoughts were in his head, Charlie wanted to know that Andrew was here in his home and that he was safe.

He didn't want him to go anywhere and even though Alan had told him about Andrew liking his foster mother, it must mean something as well that Andrew liked Charlie's entire family, which included Megan and everybody at Don's work.

As Andrew spotted Charlie standing not too far away from him, a smile bloomed on his face and now Charlie was sure of it. He wasn't going to give up on this boy. He wanted him to be here, maybe even as his son because the feelings of adoration and warmth he felt for this boy couldn't possibly be much different than what Alan was feeling for his sons.

No, Charlie was certain of it, if he could adopt Andrew, he would without hesitation.


	18. Chapter 18

_**Thank you, Chymom and Starfishyeti, for all the help!**_

**AN: Well, here is the next chapter. I hope it will be enjoyed!**_**  
**_

**Chapter 18**

Don stood at the counter, thinking about what he'd seen upstairs in Charlie's room when standing in the doorway. He wasn't sure of what was going on in that complicated mind of his brother's, but he knew that when Charlie was ready, he would find out.

Don had noticed a change in Charlie when gazing at him and Andrew. The only problem was that he didn't know what that change meant really. He'd always thought that he knew Charlie better than anyone, that when something was going on inside his brother's genious head, he would be the one to be able to figure that out, but now he was proven wrong.

"Andrew, now that you've finished eating," Charlie said putting the plate and empty glass in the dishwasher, "we can go outside for a moment."

Andrew looked at Charlie for a moment and then glanced back at Don.

"Yeah! Play with the ball?" Andrew asked, running towards the kitchen door. Smiling, Charlie joined him there. He let his hand run through the curls of the little boy.

"I would love to play ball with you," Charlie said and Andrew bolted out the door. Alan, Don and Charlie watched in amazement as Andrew ran outside. He seemed like an ordinary child at this moment, a kid without worries as how it should be for all children. He was simply home here.

Don slowly walked outsid behind his brother and Andrew.

"Lovely weather."

At these words Charlie couldn't help but stare in disbelief at him. "What?"

Don shrugged as he watched Andrew get the ball from near the pond.

"Spill it," Charlie said, his gaze returning to Andrew again. He watched him running towards him and he seemed so happy all Charlie wanted at this very moment was that this moment lasted forever.

"Nothing," Don quickly recovered, "why would you think there's something I want to say?"

"Because you started talking about the weather," Charlie smiled, "so you'll inevitably start talking about something that's on your mind, so spill it."

Don immediately recognised the look Charlie had in his eyes. It was the 'I know what you're up to' look and Don hated it when Charlie had it. It always confronted him with the fact that he had few secrets from him. But he smiled because couldn't believe that Charlie knew him so well in the things that mattered. He was able to see straight through him and Don felt slightly irritated that he couldn't do this same with Charlie.

"It's probably nothing," Don said, gazing at Andrew as well now who'd just dropped the ball and was picking it up again, "it's just...well, you seem different. I was watching you upstairs, but when you came downstairs I saw you gazing at Andrew and I know something was on your mind that wasn't there before."

"Don," Charlie simply said while looking Don straight in the eyes, "I want to adopt Andrew."

Don felt his mouth pop open. He didn't know why. This news should make him happy, this should make him smile and he wanted to, but hearing Charlie say this was something he just hadn't expected.

"You want to..." Don needed a moment to make sure he had hear correctly, "adopt him."

"Yes," Charlie simply said, "when I was with Gabriel, I met Lauren and she was amazing. She cared about Andrew and I realised that she and I cared about the same thing for the same reason. I want him to be safe, I want him to have a home and this appears to be it. Look at him, Don, don't you want to look at this scenario for the rest of your life?"

"I don't know," Don sighed, "this is a big descision and should something happen to you then he'll be left behind again. Or what about your work? You sometimes don't even get home in the evening. Having a kid means that you must always find time to be with him. And taking care of a childis a huge responsibility. You won't be able to spend days worrying over P versus NP or whatever."

"I know that, Don, and I'm actually looking forward to all that."

Don had worry written all over his face as he gazed at Charlie again. It surprised him to see a smile covering his little brother's face, but Don needed Charlie to fully understand what his descision might cause.

"If you're afraid that Andrew is going to end up with a crappy foster home, then I can assure you that he won't. I met Sara and she is wonderful and Andrew likes her."

Andrew, who now was close to them, waved. Charlie and Don only waved back and then watched Andrew continue playing again. He was rolling the ball around, running after it each time it rolled out of his reach and now and then, a giggle escaped his and Don couldn't help but smile.

"This is what I want."

Don could even hear the smile in Charlie's voice.

"I want to know that Andrew's here, that he is able to play outside any time he wants, that he is loved and that he's being taken care of because I know that when I am not around, you and dad will be."

"I know, Charlie," placing his hand on his brother's shoulder and gently squeezed it, "and I support you no matter what. And if it happens that Andrew can live here with us for the rest of his life, or at least until he moves away with his future girlfriend," Charlie had to laugh at the thought, "then I'll be more than happy with that outcome."

"Thanks," Charlie smiled, "and dad'll support me as well, I know, because he's always asking for grandchildren and Andrew is perfect."

Don let out a soft laugh at the thought of Andrew soothing the ache in their dad's life for grandchildren. Andrew stared up at the brothers, wondering what was going on.

Charlie walked over to the boy and started playing with him, Andrew enjoying the attention he got from him. Don stayed where he stood, gazing the two of them with a smile still covering his face. Alan watched from the steps with his oldest son as Charlie and Andrew played with Don's old toys. Alan's heart went out to his youngest son and the child he had come to care deeply for.

"It is a wonderful sight, isn't it," Alan said, seeing how happy Don looked while watching Charlie and Andrew. He too felt happy doing so and he knew he could stand here for the rest of his life.

"He wants to adopt Andrew," Don said.

"You okay, dad?" Don now watched him and saw how pale he had gotten.

"Adopt him," Alan whispered, "Charlie wants to adopt Andrew."

"You don't think it's wonderful news?" Don asked, turning fully towards his father now.

"It is, it really is!" Alan quickly said, "and of course I would love having Andrew as my grandson, but does Charlie know what he's getting into?"

Don shrugged his shoulders. "Does any parent know what they get into when they start with kids?"

"True," Alan had to admit, "but this is different, don't you think? Andrew's gone through so much already and Charlie hasn't even been out of the hospital a day. He hasn't dealt with his own kidnapping."

"And that's what I think makes them fit perfectly. Dad, Charlie'll always understand Andrew and Andrew will always trust Charlie. I think that if they get split up, it would hurt them both."Alan nodded, gazing at Charlie playing with Andrew again.

"A kid in the house," Alan smiled, "that'd be nice."

"Yeah, and he'd be your first grandchild, dad," Don now laughed, knowing this was what his father wanted most; grandchildren.

"Hey," Alan protested, "you know I want gradnchildren, but you also know I'd never push for it."

"Sure, dad," Don laughed even louder, "so all the 'I wish you would get married' has nothing to do with it?"

"No," Alan quickly said, smiling too now, "although if I don't push you or Charlie, neither of you'll ever get married."

"Well," Don started walking over to Andrew and Charlie, "you might get what you want, dad."

Alan watched both his sons playing with Andrew and he hoped, for everybody's sake, that Andrew would be allowed to stay here or many hearts would get broken.

**AN: Still a little later than I thought, but here is the next chapter! I hope it was liked and I will try and post the next chapter as soon as possible! In the meantime, let me know what you think about this chapter. For me, it is always fun to hear people's thoughts on whether they think Charlie will be able to adopt Andrew or something else will happen...**


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: It might not be expected, but this is it: the final chapter of Fragile Trust. I hope it will not disappoint, but this is how I always intended to end the story and I believe this is also the right way to end it.**

**I only have one word for you now; enjoy!**

**Chapter 19 – The moment of truth**

**A few weeks later...**

Charlie had known that this day would come, the day that Andrew's world would once again be turned upside down. He'd only wished that it had been longer away instead of today. His eyes found the object of his mind. The child lay fast asleep in the little bed for his afternoon nap, breathing so deeply and calm and he seemed to be so peaceful. Charlie could only hope Andrew could feel like this for the rest of his life.

But it was time and even though Charlie didn't want this, he knew he had to; he had no other choice. And yet, he knew everything was going to be all right. Sara would be here any minute now and then she would take Andrew home with her. Charlie couldn't help but sigh.

He had filed for adoption and after a very comprehensive investigation, Charlie had gotten the answer that Andrew couldn't stay with him. Not having been happy with that answer, Charlie did realise that there had been valid grounds for this decision. Sara had a husband, a steady and safe job and she already had a teenage daughter who would without doubt, be a perfect sister for Andrew. Charlie was single, always busy working at CalSci, on his own projects, for all kinds of agencies and corporations and there were times his job couldn't be considered safe. Even though he knew that his father and brother would have supported him, he also knew that he did tend to get caught up in whatever he was working on to the exclusion of the outside world. Just a bit… Nowhere near as bad as Don said…? Surely?

The more Charlie thought about it, the more he knew that this was the best thing for Andrew. He walked to the little bed and bent over it, placing his hand on Andrew's back and rubbing it. Gently he woke him up.

"Hey, buddy, time to wake," Charlie whispered. Andrew's eyes fluttered open and he immediately stretched out his arms to Charlie. Andrew still felt a little sleepy, Charlie could tell as the little boy laid his head on his shoulder and placed his little arms around his neck.

"It's a big day, isn't it?" Charlie said while walking out of the room. Andrew stretched his back, creating distance between him and Charlie so that he could see Charlie's face. Wonder filled the little boy's eyes. They had talked about this many times. Charlie had prepared him as much as he could for this day.

"Today is the day that Sara's coming to take you to your new home," Charlie explained. Andrew nodded and smiled. Sara had come by nearly every day during the last few weeks knowing that it was very important for Andrew to get to know her. Her husband Jim had come with her a few times and he too seemed like a great man. And when Lisa, Sara's daughter, had visited, Andrew had loved her immediately. They had played outside and the next day in the morning, Andrew had asked for Lisa immediately.

"With Lisa?" Andrew asked, his voice high. Charlie couldn't help but laugh.

"You're going to live with her now," he said, walking down the stairs, "and with Sara."

Andrew grinned and Charlie wondered if the boy even realised that this meant that he wasn't going to live here anymore.

"And Jim," Andrew laughed now too.

Charlie nodded. He couldn't laugh anymore and even a smile was difficult to produce. Once downstairs, he saw Don and Alan waiting on him and the boy. He walked outside and put Andrew down. The little boy immediately ran to his favorite toy; Don's old basketball, the first thing he'd played with when arriving here.

Charlie remembered that day again. Andrew had been so careful, always looking behind him to make sure that Charlie hadn't disappeared on him and he didn't speak, not even a little word. Charlie smiled when he watched Andrew play now. He was happy, he felt safe and he couldn't stop talking.

The garden was now full of signs that a little boy was living here. Toys lay everywhere and even a small swing had been installed. Alan had spent an entire afternoon working on it to make sure it was completely safe. Charlie chuckled as he remembered. When Andrew had seen it, he had cried out in joy. He'd run over to it and demanded that he and Don push him for at least an hour. They'd not minded.

"Are you okay?"

Charlie turned around when he heard the sudden voice. Don stood behind him, his hands in his pockets, apparently feeling a little uncomfortable as well.

Charlie smiled, but it wasn't a happy smile. He swallowed heavily and looked at the swing again.

"He's going to be in good hands," Don said, coming to stand next to his little brother.

"At least I tried, right?" Charlie asked, still not looking at Don.

"Yeah, you did," Don agreed, sighing. "I'm sorry, I know the decision wasn't what you wanted."

Charlie took in a deep breath. He remembered a day when he and Don were having an ordinary conversation when suddenly Don started talking about how small the chances were that Charlie would be allowed to adopt Andrew.

"_I'm just saying, Charlie," Don said, "I don't want you to get your hopes up for them to be completely destroyed."_

"_Andrew has a home here," Charlie said, standing up from the kitchen table, "he's safe here."_

"_He doesn't have a mom here," Don was getting irritated as Charlie refused to listen to him._

"_He has a mom, her name is Lauren," Charlie nearly yelled._

_Don pressed his lips together and stared at his hands on the table. He had said that completely wrong and now Charlie was mad._

"_I know, Charlie," Don kept his voice low and calm now, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that."_

_Charlie gazed at Don, his heart racing. He knew what Don was trying to tell him, but he just couldn't listen to it. He needed to believe that he could adopt Andrew._

"_I lo__ve that boy," Charlie whispered, "I want to give him a home, that's all."_

_Don stood up too and w__ent to stand next to Charlie. "Sara's really nice and warm and I met Lisa, her daughter and she too is an amazing child who really likes the idea of a little brother. Don't you want Andrew to have a big sister?"_

"_I do," Charlie said. "I do," he sighed now, "but I have to try."_

"_Of course you do. All I'm saying is that should Andrew get adopted by Sara and Jim, that he'll end up with another fantastic home."_

And so it had happened like that in the end. Charlie hadn't been awarded the right to adopt Andrew, but like Don had said, he was going to a fantastic new home.

"Charlie, Don," Alan called for them. The gaze in his eyes betrayed him. This was it; it was time. Charlie and Don looked at each other and smiled. They were going to be happy, for Andrew, as they didn't want to make a scene that would upset him.

Charlie walked towards the boy and picked him up. Andrew didn't seem to mind the extra attention he was getting at the moment.

They walked inside and there they stood. Jim was already talking to Alan while Lisa and Sara stood next to each other. They became excited as they saw Andrew. After everyone had entered, there as an uncomfortable silence for a short moment.

Andrew immediately stretched out his arms towards Lisa who didn't hesitate and took him over from Charlie. It was obvious that Andrew adored her and Charlie knew that they would soon be inseparable as brother and sister.

"We'll take good care of him," Jim said, looking at Charlie, "I promise."

"And you can come and visit us whenever you want," Sara added.

"Thank you," Charlie smiled genuinely. Seeing the four of them standing there, it just seemed to fit. Andrew felt good with them as he couldn't stop laughing and talking and Charlie knew that he would have a home there, no matter what happened.

"You still have a paper to sign, though," Sara said, taking a step forward, holding out a file.

"What is it?" Alan asked.

"Charlie's been looking after Andrew these last few weeks and he has to sign saying he's handed him over to us," She explained. Don thought it sounded a bit like signing a chain of evidence form, but wisely kept the observation to himself.

Charlie took the paper and quickly signed it. Now it had truly happened. Sara and Jim were Andrew's official foster parents and they had the opportunity to file for official adoption if they wanted.

"Are you ready to go with us?" Lisa asked Andrew. The girl turned to Charlie, "It's my 12th birthday party next week. I'd like you to come. Then you can see Andrew again."

Charlie smiled and nodded. He couldn't help but keep a tear from rolling down his cheek. Why was he crying? He'd told himself that he wasn't going to make a scene. But it had just hit him that he needed to visit this family if he wanted to see Andrew again and that he wasn't in his home anymore.

"I'd love that," Charlie said, trying to keep his voice under control.

Lisa smiled, not sure what to do when seeing Charlie upset. Sara smiled at her daughter who was still holding Andrew before turning to the Eppes men again.

"Well," Sara said, "Andrew, are you ready to see your new bedroom?"

Andrew nodded, his face lighting up with joy again.

"Can I hold him again?" Charlie asked. Lisa walked over and gave him the boy. Andrew was smiling and Charlie couldn't help but smile along.

"Are you going to be a good boy?" he asked and Andrew nodded. "Take care of them, alright, you're a brother now."

"Of Lisa?" Andrew's eyes grew wide. Charlie had explained this to him already, but every time he heard it, wonder still filled his face.

"Yes, you have to take care of her," Charlie laughed softly, "I'll miss you, but I'm going to visit you as much as I can."

"I come back again?" Andrew asked.

"Of course," Charlie quickly stroked away another tear that had escaped the corner of his eye. "You can come and play here any time you want."

Andrew laughed and stretched out his little hands towards Sara. She took him and Charlie already felt the loss of the little boy's weight not only in his arms, but in his heart as well.

"See you soon, Charlie," Sara said and then she smiled at Don and Alan. Jim and Lisa said a short goodbye as well and then they were gone. They left the house, got into the car into which Alan had put Andrew's belongings, and after waving again, they drove of.

Charlie couldn't help but stare at the car until it was completely out of view.

"It'll be so quiet around here," Alan said, standing next to Charlie.

"But he'll be around enough," Don smiled and put his arm around his brother. "You wait, he'll visit us often."

"He has two homes," Charlie turned to face his brother and father at the same time, "what more does a boy need?"

The three Eppes men smiled and walked inside again, already making plans for the next time.

**AN: That was it, the last chapter. I wanted to thank everybody who read my story and thank you for all the reviews, they were always so nice and kind and I am glad the relationship between Andrew and Charlie was liked as well. There is still a small epilogue to come which I will post as soon a possible, but until then, let me know what you thought about this story and let me know if you think I made the right choice in the end...**


	20. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

**Three years later...**

Charlie couldn't believe the work he still needed to get done. Don had a new case that demanded all his attention and now Charlie was working on it as well. He just didn't seem to get the theory right. He sighed, staring at the blackboard in front of him. None of this made sense.

He quickly grabbed a chalk and started writing down a new algorithm that was coming to him at the moment. This had to work because Don needed a break in this case. After a while he was pleased with how this new angle was working out and decided that it was time for his daily cup of coffee. He walked out of the garage and into the kitchen.

He was home alone, but he expected Don soon. Filling himself a cup, the bell rang and Charlie went to open the door. A smile lit up his face at seeing who his guest was.

"He wanted to see his friend and he absolutely didn't want to wait until tomorrow," Sara smiled. Charlie knelt down and felt Andrew fly into his arms.

"Hello, buddy," Charlie smiled. Andrew raised his hand and Charlie gave him a high five. He simply couldn't believe how tall Andrew was getting.

"So you couldn't wait until tomorrow, huh?" Charlie asked, letting Andrew and Sara in. Andrew nodded his head.

"No," Andrew ran to the kitchen, "you're coming, right?"

"I wouldn't miss your birthday party for all the money in the world," Charlie smiled. He took another cup of coffee for Sara and gave Andrew a glass of lemonade.

"I would," Andrew grinned, "and then I'd be rich!"

Sara laughed and took a sip of her coffee.

"Six years old," Charlie sighed happily, "you're growing so fast."

"He doesn't mind," Sara said, "he wants to be the tallest in his class."

Andrew had always been small for his age, but lately, he'd been shooting up and of course Andrew didn't mind.

"Why didn't Lisa come?" Charlie asked and he noticed Andrew smirking.

"She's with Paul," Sara answered, laughing seeing Andrew's reaction.

"Her boyfriend," Andrew said and made a soppy face up at Charlie before taking another sip of his lemonade.

"I hope we aren't disturbing you in anything," Sara said, leaning against the counter. "I know I should've called to let you know we were coming."

"No, it's alright," Charlie smiled. He loved the unexpected visits and he loved it even more that Andrew, Sara, Jim and Lisa all felt at home with him.

"Where's Don?" Andrew asked, placing his empty glass on the table. "Catching a bad guy?"

Charlie couldn't help but laugh. "Yes," he answered, "but he'll be here soon."

"Are you helping him?" Andrew's eye grew wide. He'd always been fascinated with Don's job and how Charlie helped him.

"I am," Charlie answered.

"I'm learning math too now," he said, proudly. "I'll be able to help Don soon."

"Don'll be very happy with that," Charlie said. "You should tell him when he gets here or tomorrow at your party."

"I will!" Andrew nearly shouted. He jumped up and down in the kitchen as Sara and Charlie glanced at each other. They both burst out with laughing.

"Well," Sara said after she could breathe again, "we should be going. We still need to pick up some things for tomorrow."

"Balloons," Andrew smiled, "big ones."

"Don't be late tomorrow," Sara warned Charlie, "don't let any work get in the way.

"I promise to be on time," Charlie smiled, "I wouldn't dare miss it."

"Do you have my present already?" Andrew suddenly asked.

Charlie nodded. "A beautiful one," he knelt down besides Andrew, "and you'll love it."

Andrew smiled even broader than before, even turning a little red in his cheeks.

"What is it?" He asked, whispering.

"You'll just have to wait until tomorrow," Charlie laughed. He stood up and ran his hand through Andrew's dark curls.

"See you tomorrow, Charlie," Sara said. They walked to the front door and only a moment later, they were at their car.

"Bye, Andrew," Charlie said, waving. Andrew waved back, a frown filling his face. Sara and Charlie watched him for a moment.

"Is it a game? Or a car? I know, I know! It's an Electroid figure. The one with the glow in the dark eyes. Or a …." His excited voice became muffled as Sara bundled him into the car.

"Who knows?" Charlie laughed. Sara closed Andrew's door and got behind the wheel.

"See you tomorrow, Charlie," she rolled her eyes while turning on the engine. "If I survive the excitement!"

"Say hey to Lisa and Jim," Charlie quickly said before she closed her door. She smiled again and nodded.

As she drove away, Charlie could only think about tomorrow and all the other tomorrows to come. Tomorrows filled with Andrew and his family.

* * * * *

The End

* * * * *

**AN: That was it, the absolute ending... It might leave some questions open concerning Andrew. What will he became later? Does he and Charlie stay close? How does his future look like and how will Andrew turn out to be when he is a father himself? But then again, life holds many questions and the journey is always exiting so I didn't want to have his whole life written down. This now gives you all the opportunity of imagining how Andrew will grow up and all. **

**I wanted to thank you all for reviewing and giving me the support I needed to write this story. I am glad many people enjoyed this story!  
And thanks again to Chymom and Starfishyeti for all the help they have given me throughout the whole story! You guys are absolutely amazing and I know this story wouldn't have been so good if it weren't for them.**


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